


Grit

by ItsaVikingThing



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Angst and Humor, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, i dunno, i'm so bad at tags
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-22
Updated: 2017-10-14
Packaged: 2018-10-10 23:31:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 25,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10449993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItsaVikingThing/pseuds/ItsaVikingThing
Summary: Victoria Chase is new to Arcadia Bay and Blackwell Academy.But it doesn't take her long to conquer the social hierarchy and establish herself exactly where she needs to be.Because Victoria Chase has planned her life to the smallest detail.Vitoria Chase is always in complete control of every aspect of her life.Until she meets Chloe Price.Chloe's a burnout. A loser. She's one strike away from being expelled. She's a social pariah.She's completely irresistible.Victoria Chase has no control around her at all.





	1. Irritation

Victoria Chase is three years into her current five year plan.

The concept of a five year plan is commonplace, but Victoria is a Chase and Chases aren't common.

Victoria's plan is not a vague outline, or a list of life goals. Her plan is detailed. Her plan is _granular_.

Like an ancient scholar trying to understand the cosmos, Victoria has constructed a mental orrery.

She is at the centre, naturally, and every class, credit, extracurricular, social connection to be exploited, rival to be thwarted, opportunity to be Chased down, whirls and clicks in orbit around her.

Every possible variable is mapped, modelled, and prepared for.

 _Everything_ is under control.

* * *

The only good thing about Arcadia Bay so far is Blackwell Academy's photography program.

That's the only part that really matters, but it still sucks that everything else is distinctly lacking.

Victoria's been in town for all of a month. That's roughly long enough to get to know the place. Five times over.

It would be charitable to describe Arcadia Bay as withered on the vine. It would be more accurate to say that the town has been hacked from the vine, swept away by the wind and repeatedly trampled into salted earth by a horde of sweaty feet.

At least that means that it's taken less time than anticipated for Victoria to get to know the only people of consequence in the region, the Prescotts, and establish herself at the top of Blackwell's social pecking order.

There are two small wrinkles. Minor irritations.

The first is a girl called Rachel Amber.

Rachel's a nobody. She's a joke. Genetics have cursed her with the kind of beauty that peaks in the teenage years but will, Victoria's quite certain, fade into commonplace prettiness in her twenties. It will disappear altogether by...no, _before_ she's thirty.

But right now, she's Blackwell's golden girl. Even Nathan Prescott's impressed by her.

Really, it's more amusing, than annoying, the way all the boys and girls at Blackwell treat Rachel like she's Victoria's equal.

Victoria knows better. She'll make sure everyone else does, too, before the end of the year.

The other problem is...embarrassing.

Victoria is still a virgin.

* * *

That particular issue is on Victoria's mind at lunch one month into her time at Blackwell.

She's leaving class with Taylor Christensen, currently at the head of the line for the post of Victoria's best friend.

Taylor's non-threateningly pretty, just the right amount of sycophant, and can actually be quite funny.

Which makes her better by far than almost everyone else at this school.

Especially the boys.

It's not that Victoria doesn't find girls attractive. It's just that, having created the outlines of plans that would carry her smoothly through her entire life at an early age, she's carried certain assumptions with her to the present day.

There's the assumption that her first time would be with a boy. She'll get married, no sooner than thirty. Presumably to a man. There will be children. Two _eventual_ children. And perhaps a cat. And never so much as a whiff of a fucking dog.

Her father loves dogs.

But those were always vague aspects of her plan. Outlying satellites on an elliptical orbit that meant they wouldn't come close to being core concerns until much later in life. Right now, the _important_ things are photography at Blackwell, and then at Yale, so that she can become a photojournalist.

Then win her first Pulitzer by 26.

Which, no, is not a goal you can plan out, but you're really just a complete fucking cretin if you don't start planning _towards_ it.

It's not really a huge problem if Victoria's a virgin by the time she gets to Yale. Still, it's a source of annoyance that every boy in Blackwell is just...uninteresting. Nathan's a looker, and he's actually quite sweet, underneath it all, but she feels no more than sisterly affection for him.

She feels considerably less than that for most of his friends. There's a couple that might serve as potential arm candy for proms or Vortex Club bashes. But that's really all they're suitable for. Zach's maybe the most appealing of the bunch and, well. He's fun to tease, but having a conversation with him is like performing dentistry with a rock and a few chips of flint.

Victoria leads Taylor to a spot under the tree where Nathan, Zach, and a few other VCers wait. Zach waves at her. He nudges Hayden, and mutters something that makes them both laugh. He grins at Victoria. He _preens_ at her.

She will not be having sex with Zach.

Arcadia Bay is apparently just not one of Victoria's erogenous zones.

Taylor suddenly squeaks, "Vic, look out!"

Victoria looks around in time to see Taylor scamper away as a lanky skater, screwing up a kick-grind or an oxenfree, or fucking _whatever_ , loses their board and comes stumbling into Victoria.

Naturally, such an invasion of personal space, such a moment of clumsiness that could taint Victoria by proxy, requires the most brutal retaliation.

But.

Long, strong fingers grip Victoria's bicep. Warm, laughing breath blows across her face. Victoria inhales cigarettes, cheap deodorant and a weirdly appealing whiff of sweat. Victoria's hand, raised defensively, somehow finds soft abdominal skin, with hints of firm muscle underneath. Victoria's exhale turns into a gasp as goosebumps erupt on her skin. Victoria's scorpion tongue sits idle between parted lips as she locks on to pale blue eyes. Her complete undoing, the skater's slow-motion sunrise of a grin.

Victoria feels a new wave of fury that this, _this_ is the person that finally makes her libido kick into gear.

The fury is promptly subsumed by a tsunami of primal emotion that puts brands in her cheeks and a stutter in her heart.

Skater says, "Sorry, sister! You okay?"

Victoria conducts another survey and finds that, yes, this is a girl, and yes, she's still right there, and yes, they're still touching, and yes, God, yes, _please_.

Skater girl says, amused, vastly amused, "Well, hi there. Want to check I cleaned behind my ears, too?"

Victoria yanks her hand away. She tries not to think about how good the girl's body felt. She says, "I want you to get me...get off me! L-loser!"

The skater's eyebrows shoot up. Delight dances a quickstep in her eyes. "Oh, shit! I just got a hella ping! Fucking _contact_!"

Victoria is always in control. Always. It must be someone else that stammers, "Sh-shut up! I don't know...have to listen...let go of me, bitch, or I-I'll scream!"

"Chill! It was just an accident." She winks, and her grin heats up again. "Kinda looked like you were into it, too."

Victoria finds it easier to assert her normal tone when the girl steps back. "What the fuck did you say? I was not-"

She snorts. "Wanting me to get you off? Whatever." She picks up her board, glances back. "Hey, denial's just pain you _think_ you're deferring. I read that in a fortune cookie once." The size of her grin seems inversely proportional to the amount of air Victoria has in her her lungs. "Think about it, sister. Those cookies _know_ things."

She hops onto her board, gets rolling, flips off Nathan as he arrives on the scene, and she's gone.

Victoria gapes after her. "Who the fuck was _that_?"

Nathan glowers after the skater. "That's someone...something. Complete burnout. I didn't even know she was still here."

Taylor, whose desertion in a time of danger has been noted, chimes in with, "She's in some of my classes. I heard she got suspended for, like, fighting Logan. Logan Robertson? He's on the football team!"

Nathan says, "Want me to get her expelled for you?"

"What?"

Taylor shifts uncomfortably. "I don't think you need to worry about her, Vic. She gets into trouble so much, she won't be around much longer."

Taylor flinches when Victoria snaps, "Who said I was worried? She's the one who should worry. If she comes near me again, she's dead!"

Nathan laughs. "I'd pay to see that shit! But forget that loser. We've got epic parties to plan, and Hayden's too fucking baked to think of anything useful. We need your golden touch, Vic!"

Victoria lets herself get dragged over to the tree, and into a discussion about the next VC party, and with that, skater girl is dismissed from everyone's minds.

Everyone except Victoria's.

She realises that while her plan remains essentially sound, some of her old assumptions are in need of serious revision.

* * *

It turns out that Taylor, when carefully questioned, is able to provide quite a bit of dirt on one Chloe Price.

Chloe is a skater, a stoner, a serial class skipper, a prickly, even violent, girl with few attachments at Blackwell.

Over the next couple of weeks, Victoria encourages Nathan and Taylor and the rest to eat lunch outdoors whenever the weather allows it. She makes the, quite reasonable, point that Blackwell's cafeteria is revolting and that the Stark family would have something to say about the current time of year.

Her pretext established, Victoria has the perfect opportunity to use lunch breaks to people watch.

Well, girl watch.

Emphasis on the singular.

Chloe's usually to be found under the open sky, when she shows up at all.

Days she doesn't, Victoria gets more easily annoyed than usual.

Because while Chloe is, by rumour and observation, friendly with a few skater boys and friends with no one at all, she isn't...cold. Or even standoffish. In fact, when she's skating, moving, grinning...she's something else entirely.

She's carefree, charismatic, _chromatic_. She's a growing sense of urgency in Victoria's mind. She's a distraction from everything Victoria should be focused on.

Out of everyone in this miserable town, this delinquent creature is the most...attractive.

So Victoria watches. She studies. She makes new plans. Plans that will allow Victoria to bring Chloe into close orbit around her.

* * *

It's almost three weeks since their first, and so far only, encounter.

Victoria finds her target skipping English to smoke weed behind the bleachers on the football field.

It's not the first time Victoria's tried to approach her, but it's the first time Chloe's been alone. No pathetic skater boys sharing joints and sniffing round her.

Lame fucking creepers.

There's no one else in sight.

Victoria's prepared for this. This time, Victoria will be the one taking charge.

Not Miss Chloe Price.

Chloe's leaning against the back of the bleachers. She's granted a kind of elegance by the lazy ease with which she smokes.

She's a disaster in every other sense, though.

Shredded jeans, spiky bracelets, messy strawberry blonde locks peeking out from under a tatty beanie. She's wearing a baggy wifebeater and there's a (for fuck's sake) plaid shirt tied around her hips. Not much makeup, way too much eyeliner. There's acne visible on her cheeks.

She's _gross_.

So why does Victoria start to shake when she gets close? Why does her heart skip when Chloe raises a challenging eyebrow? Why does Victoria need to take a couple of deep breaths before she can say her opening line?

Chloe doesn't hesitate. She says, "Hey, there. What's an all-A lady like you doing cutting class in a place like this?"

Reflex gets the better of intentions. Victoria snaps, "Oh, you're _so_ edgy! At least I'm here for a reason, not because I can't understand the lesson."

Chloe laughs. "Oh, damn! That's so flattering that you're risking your education just to talk to poor dumb me."

Victoria winces, and quickly says, "I'm only cutting class because I don't want to be seen with you!"

"But you do want to _be_ with me, huh?" Chloe's grin is infectious.

It certainly puts a fever in Victoria.

Maybe that's why she's saying all the wrong things.

Sweating, and resentful of her body's treachery, Victoria tries to get back to her prepared lines. She pulls out her cigarettes, slips one between her lips. She asks, "Got a l-"

There's a sparked zippo in front of her.

Victoria leans in, takes fire, and draws badly needed nicotine into her lungs.

A thought occurs, as soon as dopamine makes thinking possible. "An 'all-A lady?' Have you been stalking me, Price?"

She laughs. "Not at all, _Chase_. No more than you have me, anyway." Her eyes gleam.

"I made some inquiries. I was...curious."

"Oh, really? And how do I excite the curiosity of the queen of Blackwell's social scene?"

Chloe really has been asking about her. That's...oddly thrilling. But Chloe's far too pleased with herself and Victoria's shown too much weakness already.

"I'm always curious when I find a new specimen of lowlife. Everyone says you're the biggest loser in school. Failing your classes, even when you bother to show up. Probably a drug dealer. Definitely trash. Tolerated only by the scum around here." Victoria smirks. "If I write a paper on you, I could probably get it published in a sociology journal."

Victoria feels a dangerous heat build in the space between them.

Chloe rolls her eyes. "Gasp! You've got me all figured out! Truly, you have seen right through me. But, not being as smart as you, when I look at the spoiled little princess in front of me, all I'm left with are questions. Well, one question. How did you get a stick that big up an ass so...petite?"

Chloe takes extra pains over every plosive in the last word. She smirks and rewards herself with a drag on her joint.

Victoria pleasantly surprises herself when she says, "Do you spend a lot of time thinking about my ass?"

Chloe laughs. "Only as part of a package, sister. A nicely wrapped one, I'll admit. I'm still making up my mind about opening it, though."

"Oh, you'll like it, if I let you...unwrap me." Victoria sees the pulse jump in Chloe's throat.

Contact!

"W-well, that'll all depend, I guess. On what you're, uh, looking for."

"Isn't that obvious?"

"Jesus! You could buy a girl dinner, first."

What? Is Chloe asking...? Does she want...a _date_?

That prospect sets Victoria's heart racing and gets her hands shaking.

But that's not really part of the plan. She's not sure she can afford to be actually _seen_ with Chloe Price, anyway. Victoria's reputation might suffer.

Victoria says, "Oh, what? You want to hold hands and...and braid each other's hair first? I thought you'd be into the idea of hooking up."

"Yeah? Because you know so much about me?"

Victoria scoffs. "Does it matter? I mean, you're...appealing. But it's not like I don't have other options. I mean, I'm basically doing you a favour even talking to you...I..."

Victoria's stomach churns. She winces and quickly looks away from Chloe's face, folding her left arm across her body. She takes a nervous puff of her cigarette. She watches Chloe from the corner of her eye.

Chloe stares at her for what must be an hour. At last she smiles, slow and incredulous. "Oh, my God! You have no clue what you're doing, do you?"

Victoria snorts. She rolls her eyes. She smirks. She shifts her hips. She licks her lips. She thinks of nothing to say. Not a single word.

She desperately sucks on her dwindling cigarette, drags too deeply, and winds up choking and coughing.

"You okay there, _Queen_ Victoria?"

Victoria plumes out smoke like a leaky dragon. She rasps, "Don't fucking call me that!"

"You don't like nicknames? No wonder people think you have a stick up your ass."

"Bullshit! I'm part of the Vortex Club. I know more about partying than you, little miss loner! If you're so fucking cool, why don't you have any friends?"

Chloe's eyes harden. "Because I have some standards. Unlike your pathetic party club."

Unfortunately, Victoria does not surprise herself at all when she says, "Fuck you!"

"Pass. I have standards, remember?" Chloe shrugs. Her shoulders are bad liars. Her hands shake a little, when she relights her joint.

Victoria tosses her cigarette butt and gets into Chloe's space. Victoria might not be the tallest person at Blackwell, but she usually feels that way. She certainly makes a point of making everyone else feel shorter than her.

Victoria snarls, inches from Chloe's lips, "I don't meet _your_ standards? I'm fucking _spectacular_! I'm better than any fumble-fingered slut _you_ could get with!"

Chloe looks down at her and says, dryly, "Yeah, you're a real peach."

"Well, you're disgusting! You dress like you raided the dumpster behind a thrift store. And you probably tried to eat those jeans, first, because you're so fucking brain damaged. And...and you smell! And-"

Victoria crashes into her. She grabs at Chloe's head. Chloe grunts in surprise and is forced to lose her joint. Victoria thrusts her fingers under the beanie, into Chloe's hair, and pulls her down towards her. Their lips meet, too hard. Their teeth scrape. Victoria leaves lip gloss on Chloe's skin. Victoria pulls back, changes angle, goes for it.

Chloe shoves her.

Not hard, not with intent to injure. Just hard enough to send Victoria reeling back a couple of steps and make her aware of their disparity in strength.

She flinches away from Chloe's expression. When Chloe starts to speak, she shuts out the sense of Chloe's words, even if she can't close out her voice.

Victoria just turns away and decides to walk back to the main building, willing her legs to maintain a steady pace.

Until, three steps later, she has to run and pray that no one will see her before she can fix her makeup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks very much for reading!
> 
> This story's been percolating for a while. Too long, maybe! I'd really appreciate any feedback you might care to leave.
> 
> Thanks again!
> 
> Edit: Ahem! Sorry for the false alarm, subbers! There was a bit of mobile glitch type event there...


	2. Inflammation

Victoria hesitates, torn between trying to get to the dorms and the nearer refuge of her car. By the time she decides to head to the lot, Chloe catches her.

"Victoria, wait up!"

"Fuck _off_ , Price. Leave me the fuck alone!"

She strides quickly towards the lot.

Chloe follows, jogging to keep up. "Hey, listen. C'mon, slow down a second!"

Victoria risks a quick glance, sees what looks like genuine worry in Chloe's eyes. She looks away and lengthens her stride.

Chloe keeps pace and doesn't try to touch her. Victoria's grateful for that much.

"Look, I didn't mean to be a complete dick, okay? Just...kind of a dick."

"Whatever. Get lost, loser."

Victoria pulls out her keys and unlocks her car. She strides round to the driver's side and opens the door. She hesitates.

Chloe's just standing there, worried and tense. She's not suited to stillness. She's all jutting bones and stark lines, made brittle by the cold front Victoria's trying to put up.

But she's still there.

"Are you getting in, or what?"

Chloe's grin transforms her face and unlocks her body. She's never looked better than she does at that moment, bounding towards Victoria's car.

* * *

Victoria starts the engine and drives. Destination: away.

Chloe doesn't protest. She doesn't say anything at all.

It helps. Driving and Chloe's quiet presence both. Victoria thinks she's shed all the tears she's going to, today. She needs to fix her face, but that's not exactly a priority.

If Chloe won't kiss Victoria when she's looking her best, then...

And, shit, here come the tears, again.

"Hey. It's not _that_ bad. I promise, you'll stop being mortified by the end of the day. Then you'll just stay embarrassed for another five, maybe ten years. Tops!"

And, somehow, some treacherous laughter abandons Victoria in a snort which adds mucus to her list of problems.

She wipes her nose on her sleeve, hoping that Chloe didn't see anything.

Victoria tries to take deep, calming breaths. Abruptly, she slams her hand on the horn. "Fuck! Fuck, that was so fucking _stupid_!"

"Okay, just breathe, sister. And, uh, first chance, pull over."

Chloe sounds nervous, and that's unusual enough to make Victoria's emotional spiral into an Escher painting. It doesn't take away any of the complexity, but it flattens things out. It makes it possible for her to see that she's driving too fast, with blurry vision.

No part of Victoria's plans involve being killed or maimed in a car accident. She slows the car and her thoughts. She focuses on the coordination of muscles and nerves required to guide her vehicle to one of the scenic nooks that make up so much of Arcadia Bay's topography.

Chloe doesn't say a word, barely even looks at Victoria, for the duration. She doesn't stir until they're parked and powered down and sheltered by trees on one side and seemingly endless nothing everywhere else.

Chloe gives Victoria a minute to listen to the irregular tick of the cooling engine before she ventures, "So..."

"Don't. I can't deal with that right now."

"Okay." Chloe tugs off her disgusting beanie and runs her fingers through her hair. "Can I ask you something? Unrelated."

Victoria groans. She hates this sort of thing. This getting-to-know-you crap. Everybody at Blackwell should already know everything about her that she wants them to know. What's the point of her friends and the peons she terrorises if they aren't spreading the word?

"Just fucking talk. About something. I need to hear someone else's voice right now."

Chloe nods solemnly. "Yeah, I hella get that. It's dumb, but, well, has your friend Taylor ever expressed any sapphic urges?"

Victoria stares at Chloe. She can feel her face getting red, her eyes sting. "What the fuck did you say?"

Chloe puts her hand on Victoria's shoulder, grips firmly, but gently. Her face is serious, intense, even. But there, deep in her eyes, glints something amused. "Dude. Come on. How do you even concentrate with those legs in front of you the whole time?"

Victoria takes refuge in learned reflex. She scoffs. "Oh, please! They aren't all that. Just because she likes to be Ms. Obvious with the shorts."

"Uh, I have dreams about those legs, Victoria. I'm haunted by them. Shit, dude, _I_ haunt _them_ , sometimes. Like, I'm just a regular gentle-Price one minute, then one glimpse and I'm changing direction and being a full-on creeper."

Chloe's deadpan is dead not long after arrival. Her grin is in the ascendancy. Her hand is warm on Victoria's shoulder. "I'm scared to get too close, in case my head melts like in _Raiders_ , but I still have to know. Give me something, Victoria!"

Victoria shrugs off Chloe's hand. "Jesus! You're a fucking mess, Price! Stick your head out of the window if you're going to drool. I don't want your fluids on my upholstery."

Chloe laughs. "Theeeere we go! _That's_ the Victoria Chase we all know and can identify on sight."

"You're an asshole. And a pig. Stay away from Taylor."

"Does that mean you won't put in a good word for me, then?"

Victoria glares at her. Chloe just grins and raises her hands. "Okay, okay! Topic closed."

Victoria snorts. She pretends to look out the window, but she watches Chloe, instead.

In the stillness, Chloe's gaze is pulled to the horizon.

There's a quiet moment. It's almost pleasant, until Victoria ruins it.

She blurts, "Why don't you want to kiss me?"

Chloe grimaces. She says, slowly, "Well, who says I don't? I mean, you are very kissable, for sure. But-"

"We were kissing and you pushed me away!"

" _We_ weren't kissing. You kinda assaulted me, Victoria. That shit's not okay."

"What? No! I was just...shit. I didn't mean to-"

"Dude, breathe. Everything's chill now, okay? Just, don't do something like that again."

"Yeah, believe me, I won't."

"Right, well that's-"

"God, just shut up about it!"

"Look, no offense, but do you even know what you want right now? I mean, you weren't trying to kiss me, you were maybe proving something? Or something."

"Oh, that's just incredible insight. Thank you _so_ much! I wish I'd known about the Price Oracle sooner, I would be so much better off by now!"

"I'm a brain-damaged loser, remember? You really want _my_ advice?"

"Look, I didn't say that's what _I_ thought. It's just-"

"What everyone says. I get it. I mean, why bother trying to get to know someone, when you can just listen to this town's non-stop rumour mill?"

"So you're just misunderstood? All that fighting and the suspensions are just you _expressing_ yourself? Or is it just the usual daddy issues bullshit?"

"Who told you...?" Chloe's eyes get wide, her lip trembles.

Victoria's satisfaction at scoring a hit doesn't last long, though.

Because Chloe suddenly gets _loud_. "Fucking assholes here think they know everything about everyone, don't they? Fuck this town! Nobody really gives a shit about anything, except gossip and getting their own way. Well, fuck all that!"

Chloe's body is rigid, her face reddening, her knuckles white.

Victoria can achieve a tone of voice with an acidity beyond the limits of litmus paper. But Chloe's bitterness isn't merely corrosive. It's annihilating.

Victoria has to swallow before she says, carefully, "Chloe, I was trying to get to know you-"

Chloe turns on her, snarling, "No, you were _not_ trying to get to know me! You were trying to fucking use me! Just to scratch some fucking itch, get some shit out of your system before you go marry Thad, or Brock, or some other monosyllable who looks good in a suit. Someone you can wheel out at cocktail parties and baby showers and all the other boring _shit_ you'll call a life. And if you even remember me, or whatever hopeless sap you get your manicured claws into, it'll only be to laugh, and pretend it wasn't the only fucking time in your life you actually felt alive! And, by the way? FUCK. YOU. God, why did I think...?"

Chloe gasps, and turns away, and scrabbles desperately at the door. She lurches out of the car and staggers towards a distant tree line.

Victoria just sits there, unable to move. Unable to look away.

After maybe twenty yards, Chloe stops. Victoria feels a weird mix of hope and apprehension that she'll come back.

Chloe throws back her head and screams. She only stops when she loses her balance, and almost pitches over.

She scrubs her scalp, messing up her hair. She cuffs at her eyes. Then, without looking back, she starts trudging away from Victoria, from Blackwell, from Arcadia Bay.

Victoria has no plan for this. She looks at her hands, straining in a death grip on the wheel. She has to tell them twice before they let go.

Victoria doesn't want to be here anymore.

She doesn't want to leave Chloe, not really. Not in that state. But even though Chloe's less than fifty yards away, Victoria doesn't think she'll be able to reach her.

She leans across the passenger seat to reach for the still open door.

That's when she sees Chloe's beanie, lying forgotten in the footwell.

* * *

Victoria has to sprint to catch up with Chloe. "Chloe! Wait!"

Chloe turns around. Victoria expects hostility, but Chloe just looks exhausted.

She tries to sound annoyed when she says, "What do you want, Victoria?"

Victoria's sweating again, a bit, and out of breath, too. Fucking cigarettes.

She takes a deep breath, and says, "You forgot your hat."

Chloe blinks at the object in question. She takes it, gingerly. "Oh."

Victoria says, quickly, before Chloe can turn away again, "I just didn't want to get lice in my car."

Chloe blinks again. She stares at Victoria for a few seconds. Victoria holds her breath, which _really_ fucks with her recovering lungs.

At last, Chloe says, "Might be too late. You'll probably have to fumigate that shit."

Victoria hopes Chloe doesn't hear the relief in her sigh. "Probably. The damage can't get any worse now, right? In which case, you might as well let me drive you back."

Chloe looks away. "Look, I don't want your-"

"I don't want to marry Thad."

"Huh?"

"Or Brock. Maybe a Thadina. Or a Brockette. Except, no, because that would be fucking ridiculous. And any parents who name children that way should be neutered, frankly. And Thads and Thadettes should be put into some kind of protection program."

"Ha! Yeah, new identity. New name, for sure. New family. That'd be something, huh?"

Chloe's voice sort of trails off and Victoria doesn't really know how to parse that, so she just nods. She says, "Look, I know what I want, Chloe. I'm not very experienced..."

Victoria glares at Chloe, daring her to laugh. But Chloe's just watching her, solemn and searching.

Victoria coughs. "Anyway. I know what I want, okay?"

Chloe shrugs. "Okay. Good for you. That's just lovely, and..." She sighs. "Shit. I could've been less of an asshole. I guess. Back there. Okay?"

"That's easily the worst apology I've ever heard, you know."

But Victoria smiles, when she says it. She's a bundle of strained muscles and screaming nerves, but she smiles, so Chloe can see it.

Chloe huffs out a breath. She says, "You didn't even try to apologise to me. You just accused me of being pestilential!"

"Can you really blame me? Have you seen your 'clothes'?"

Chloe snorts, her expression more animated. She says, "Not my fault you're not up to date with next season's trends, Vicky. Louis and Donatella assure me that this is _the_ look."

"You know, you could pull off a lot of different styles. It's a pity you default to Central Casting rebellious lesbian."

"Uh, you don't have to be gay to wear plaid, Victoria. Just FYI."

"You could afford to try something other than, though. I mean, Jesus, it's such a-"

"Hang on. Are you trying to play dress up with me? Is that your fetish?"

Chloe's eyes are gleaming.

"W-what? No! No fucking way! I was just saying you're tall, you've got a nice figure, you could-"

"I like the way I look. And it obviously works for you, too."

Chloe winks at her. She grins.

Victoria feels something loosen within her. She feels warmth, rather than heat, in the air between them.

Victoria sighs. "Yes, I'm completely gay for you because of your ugly attire. Can we go back to Blackwell, now?"

There's a pause. Victoria has to bite her tongue, because she's quite certain that any further words she says will only sabotage whatever this moment is.

Chloe says, "Okay. I guess I do have a schedule to get through. There's lunch, and then afternoon classes to skip."

They start to walk back to Victoria's car.

"You could actually just go to class. You're clearly not an idiot. It can't be _that_ hard for you."

"Awww, thanks Vicky. That's actually the nicest thing you've said...ever? I'm guessing ever."

"Oh, fuck you."

"We already did that one."

They get back to the car. Chloe moves round to the other side of the vehicle as Victoria unlocks. Chloe opens the door, then hesitates, and gives Victoria a look.

"Why do you care if I go to class?"

Victoria rolls her eyes. "Oh, God. Do you really...? Ugh. I know you have Chemistry with Taylor. Even if it's just to perv on her, go to fucking class, Chloe."

Chloe looks down. She says, softly, "You really think me and Taylor have chemistry?"

"Gag! Get in the car, jackass."

* * *

The drive back is silent.

When they get to Blackwell, they just sit for a minute. The silence takes on another texture.

Victoria breaks first, though she doesn't say anything. She just climbs out of the car and slams the door.

Chloe soon follows her. She closes her door quietly and looks around warily.

"Relax. Security won't bother us."

"Uh, they might not bother _you_. He'll give me shit for months if they catch me."

Victoria frowns. "Who are talking about? Principal Wells?"

"Uh, yeah, sure. He's looking for any excuse to expel me."

"He can't be looking that hard. You give him excuses every day."

"Shit, Vicky! How much time have you spent watching me?"

Victoria scowls and crosses her arms, hoping Chloe will somehow be distracted from the unprecedented scale of Victoria's blush.

Chloe laughs. "My very own creepy admirer!"

"Oh, fuck off! We've been over this haven't we? It's mutual." Victoria tries to keep her tone level. "Isn't it?"

Chloe shrugs. "It's something, anyway." Chloe takes another long look around before she meets Victoria's eye again. She grins, suddenly. "Sooo..."

She draws it out, exaggerates it to the point of indecency.

Victoria suppresses a smile. "So."

"Completely gay for me, huh? See you behind the bleachers, sometime?"

Victoria shudders. The humiliation is too fresh. And it's so _tacky_. "Not a fucking chance."

Chloe rocks back on her heels. Her face tightens, then smooths out, completely blank. "Yeah, fair enough. Stupid idea, anyway. Bye, then."

She starts to walk away, shoulders tight.

"Oh, are you kidding me, Chloe? Come here and give me your phone! Idiot."

Chloe comes back, a little wary. She gives Victoria a defiant look.

Victoria hopes her own expression is blank when Chloe passes her a battered phone with a badly cracked screen.

Victoria inputs her number, and texts herself before she has time to think. Victoria passes the phone back to Chloe, and hopes she doesn't linger too long when their fingers brush.

Victoria says, "Whatever we end up doing, it's not going to be behind the bleachers. Or anywhere near school, for preference. _I_ have standards, too."

Chloe chews her lip. She opens her mouth, closes it again, and eventually just says, "Okay."

"Fine, then."

"We should make ourselves scarce, I guess. Bell's going to ring."

"Au revoir, then. M-ma jolie fille."

"Uh, sure. Back atcha, sister."

There's a moment where they both hesitate, expecting the other to make the first move.

Chloe laughs. She stretches, reaching long arms up to the sky. "Right! Later, Vicky!"

She bounds away, all energy, suddenly, and _Jesus_ , she's something when she moves.

She pauses at the steps and looks back.

"Yo! Thanks!"

"For what?"

"Giving me a reason to go to chem class!" She grins, waves, and is gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for taking the time to drop by!
> 
> I'm currently juggling stories with all the grace of a baby hippo and this has not been my most productive writing week so far.
> 
> I mention this only as a pelude to saying I might not have an update of this story for you next week. I'll try not to keep you waiting too long, though.
> 
> Take care of yourselves in the meantime!


	3. Nerve Signals

It hasn't been achieved gracefully, but Victoria has...something with Chloe.

All through lunch, and classes, and homework, and hanging with Nathan, and even through her ritual sacrifice of lotions to the deity of skincare, and especially through the hours she doesn't sleep that night, Victoria tries to figure out what that something is.

Chloe isn't what Victoria expected. Victoria is forced to admit that she didn't give much thought to who or what Chloe was other than something she wanted.

One thing is clear. Chloe isn't a poseur rebel. There's real pain, real anger inside her.

Victoria isn't sure she _wants_ to pursue this relationship.

She has to.

That's all.

What she really loses sleep over is the _how_.

* * *

By morning, she has a plan of action.

Chloe needs a nickname, something Victoria can safely put into her contacts list. Something she can build a cover story around.

Victoria looks up the etymology of 'Chloe' online. Green shoot of a plant? She snorts. She's sure Chloe's parents had no idea quite how appropriate the name would become.

Victoria pauses. She wonders what it is about Chloe's father that sets Chloe off. She'll have to see if she can find someone who knows that she can safely ask.

Victoria adds Chloe's number to her contacts list under 'Bud'.

She thinks about how to word her opening gambit during her morning routine. She's grateful that Chloe doesn't live in the dorms.

In the minutes between her final systems check in the mirror and Taylor swinging by with morning coffee, Victoria takes the plunge.

_Me: Good morning, cherie. Did you have sweet dreams? We should get together today._

Victoria's still waiting for an answer when Taylor knocks.

"Good morning, Victoria! Express-o delivery! Well, latte. Better latte than never? Um-"

"Morning. Gimme. Don't pun. Shut the door."

Victoria only realises that she's been staring fixedly at her phone when Taylor clears her throat.

Victoria puts her phone down and glares at her. "What is it, Taylor?"

"Nothing! Just, like...it looks like you really need coffee this morning?"

Victoria takes a gulp. "I didn't get much sleep-"

Her message tone chimes. She grabs her phone.

_Bud: its way 2 early for frenching._

Victoria's nostrils flare. Otherwise she remains outwardly composed.

_Bud: why u even school at this hour?_

_Bud: where u wanna meet? Do u have a secret makeout lair?_

Victoria grits her teeth.

She looks up. Taylor's staring.

Victoria says, "It's...Bud. My new French tutor. I'm trying to arrange a session. Pain in the ass."

Victoria quickly types a reply.

_Me: Meet me at Rose's Café after school._

Taylor says, "Oh! I didn't know you spoke French?"

Victoria shrugs, "Un peu. C'est une belle langue, n'est-ce pas?"

"Um, so...your French tutor goes by _Bud_?"

Victoria blinks. "He's...Canadian?"

"Oh. Uh, okay. So you can't hang after class?"

Victoria looks at her new message.

_Bud: ill wear a pink carnation or whatevs_

_Me: I know what you look like, jackass._

Victoria looks up at Taylor. "Sorry, Sweet-T. I'm busy this evening."

* * *

Rose's Cafe is actually a little bit outside the town proper, right on the shore. It's the sort of place that puts photos of the dishes they serve on the menu.

Victoria could have cooked more appealing food when she was fifteen. She could've taken better pictures when she was five.

No one from the Vortex Club would come here.

No self-respecting teen would come here.

But given the quality of the hoi polloi in Blackwell, she's taken precautions in case anyone who isn't at least four decades her senior shows up.

Victoria has a seat in the corner. She can see the door, but she should be able to duck down before anyone spots her.

Chloe hasn't shown up.

Victoria's nursing both an Americano that she will never admit is actually pretty decent and her wrath.

Victoria realises that her leg is jittering. She glares at it until it stops.

Victoria looks up and there Chloe is. She's at the door, looking around anxiously.

She's wearing a new beanie. And what looks like a new vest, one with an elaborate skull logo on the front. She's still wearing old ripped jeans, but they look freshly laundered.

Victoria wipes her palms on her seat's tattered upholstery. She makes a mental note to wash her hands twice when she goes to the bathroom.

Chloe visibly brightens when she spots Victoria and bounds over, flushed, and grinning.

"Hey, sorry I'm late!" She waves vaguely towards the front door. "Engine trouble. Got it sorted, though...uh. _What_ are you wearing?"

Victoria tugs off her shades. "It's called a hoodie. Aw, is this the first time you've seen one, bumpkin?"

Victoria's actually a little embarrassed. She normally only wears this for indoor lounging.

Chloe rolls her eyes. She pulls a chair out from the table, casually reverses it, and straddles it.

Chloe says, "I've never seen a fucking _Prada_ hoodie before. What are they, like, 500 bucks?"

It's Gucci and it cost $2700.

"Whatever. It's comfortable!"

Chloe snorts. "Right, yeah. _That's_ your priority." She looks around, and waves at their dozing waitress.

"Well, you look...like you've washed. At least."

Chloe grins at her. "Don't flatter yourself. This is just my monthly bath time."

Victoria makes a gagging noise. "You're gross."

"I do contain multitudes. If you count 144 as multitudinous."

Victoria doesn't get it, so she just scoffs. "You made an effort, I guess. I suppose I can forgive you for being late. This time."

Chloe gives her a searching look. "Well, thanks? It's pretty, by the way."

"What?"

"Your overpriced hoodie. The roses? Pretty." Chloe blushes. "I like roses."

Victoria smiles. Before she can say anything, though, the waitress manages to overcome Xeno's paradox and appears at their table.

"Hi there! You gals ready to order?"

Chloe raises her eyebrows at Victoria. "We eating?"

"God, no! Not here."

The waitress frowns.

Chloe quickly says, "Sorry, she's new. You know, to being human? Lizard people parents. Very sad story." Chloe glances at the waitress' name tag. "Mary? Uh, could I just get...your largest size hot chocolate? With every extra you can possibly charge her for crammed into the mug? Thanks."

The waitress' lips quirk up again. She chuckles. "Alrighty. I like a challenge!"

She pointedly ignores Victoria as she sweeps away.

Victoria scowls at Chloe. "You think I'm paying for that? She's incompetent and-"

"You're paying for being _rude_. And you're leaving the best tip she's ever seen, too."

They glare at each other.

Victoria could win this little staring contest, easily. But she's not invested enough to bother. She looks away. "Whatever."

They're quiet until after Mary's deposited a gallon mug overflowing with various substances destined to become arterial plaque in front of Chloe.

Victoria stares at the mug. "Please tell me you're not going to...consume that?"

Chloe stares at the mountain of marshmallow-encrusted and chocolate-dusted cream, towering over presumable drinking chocolate.

"I...don't know where to even begin. Oh, shit!"

"What?"

"It's _moving_! Gimme your shoe, Vic! In case it comes for us!"

There's a strange, startling sound.

It's the sound of Victoria Chase giggling.

* * *

"So what are we doing here?"

Even with the help of a spoon, a straw, and a lot of napkins, Chloe isn't making much of a dent on her monstrous beverage.

"Currently? I'm being horrified."

Chloe grins. She tackles a heaped spoonful of cream and marshmallow. "You're just jealous, 'cause Mary likes me best."

Victoria sighs. "I wanted somewhere private."

Chloe slurps some chocolate through her straw. "What? You embarrassed to be seen with me?"

"Right now? Yes!"

Chloe wipes her mouth with the back of her hand. She stares Victoria in the eye, suddenly. Her eyes are pale blue, but there's nothing cold about them.

Chloe says, "What about in general?"

Victoria's ready, this time. "No! Not really. It's just...I'm still figuring this out? Can we just try things? You know, and keep it between the two of us? Are you up for that?"

Chloe studies her.

It's more nerve-racking than any time she's been called into her father's office to explain an A-.

Slowly, she nods. "Okay. I mean, look. We're attracted to each other. That's obvious, at least. And I want to, uh, try things with you, for sure."

Victoria hides her grin behind her cup. She can't do much about the blush, but at least she's not alone on that one.

Chloe clears her throat and shifts in her seat. "And I get wanting to keep things low key. I do. Even if I don't really give a shit what anybody else thinks. Just...we have to be honest with each other, okay?"

"Of course! That's...actually, that's really mature. If I'm honest." Victoria smirks.

Chloe rolls her eyes. "Well, if we're being honest? You're a condescending ass sometimes."

"Only sometimes? I need to work on that."

Chloe holds up her hands. "Okay, okay! I surrender. I don't want to make you _worse_."

"Then don't make it _too_ easy for me. That wouldn't be...fun."

Victoria likes watching the pulse jump in Chloe's neck. She likes the gleam in her eyes and the lazy grin on her lips even more.

Chloe leans forward. "Oh, I can think of lots of ways of keeping things interesting."

"Well, why don't we get out of here so you can show me some of them?"

* * *

Mary thanks Chloe profusely for the tip Victoria left on the way out.

Chloe just laughs at Victoria's huff of annoyance.

Night is closing in. Victoria pauses to admire the last sliver of sun on the horizon.

Chloe wanders over to a burned out husk of a truck someone's illegally dumped in the lot. She leans against it.

"So, what now?"

Victoria frowns. "Come away from that thing. The slack-jaw with a beer gut who drives it might get cross if he catches you."

Chloe rubs her jaw. She lifts up her vest and pats her stomach. "Hmm, nope. Three strikes, Vic."

Victoria blinks. She wrenches her gaze up from where she was all too openly staring. "What? You came in _this_?"

Chloe's grin blazes to life. "Am I braver than you thought, princess?"

"Even dumber, maybe. And don't call me princess."

"Oh. I thought...never mind."

Victoria reluctantly joins Chloe. She stands a few feet in front of her, unwilling to get any closer to the truck.

Chloe says, "So..."

Victoria fights a grin of her own. Things are going well. Time to take charge.

Victoria sighs. "So. It's later than I thought. And I have homework to do."

Chloe's face falls. "Oh. Right. I guess you do, huh?"

"And so do you."

"Bleh. They can't fail me for not doing homework."

"Do you have no grasp of how school works? At all?"

"What even is school, when you really think about it?"

"Chloe, the odds of you getting a goodnight kiss are rapidly diminishing."

"You get turned on by homework? I guess opposites _do_ attract!"

Victoria just folds her arms and scowls.

Chloe stares at her. After a moment, she sighs. "God, fine. I will go straight home and do my homework. Happy?"

Victoria is. Because she's in complete control, now.

"Come here."

Chloe does. She gets very close. And closer still. Close enough for Victoria to feel Chloe's breath when she asks, "Happy?"

Victoria shakes her head.

Chloe leans in.

This time, it's a much gentler meeting of bodies and lips. Chloe kisses her softly, sweetly. Victoria wants to deepen the kiss. She wants to run her fingers through Chloe's hair. She wants to rake her nails down Chloe's skin. She wants to sink her teeth into Chloe's flesh. When Chloe presses against her, when her tongue teases Victoria's lips, she wants to obey every impulse that surges through her body and threatens to overwhelm her mind and take Chloe and be taken by her, here, now. _Right now_.

Victoria pulls back instead. She takes a slightly shaky breath. Another, steadier one. "That was...nice. But you need to learn to be patient. Good things come to those who wait, Chloe."

Chloe shakes her head. "Are you kidding? That's-"

"All I have time for. But we'll arrange something...soon. Very soon."

Chloe stares at her. She grins, suddenly. "Okay, Vic. If that's how you want to play it. I guess I'll just have to play along."

Victoria smirks. "Goodnight, cherie."

Chloe laughs. "We'll need to do a proper French lesson sometime."

Victoria turns away and walks towards her car, fighting the urge to skip.

When she gets to where she's parked, she turns round. Chloe's watching her. She's smiling.

Victoria smiles back. "Hey!"

"Yeah?"

"I...I had fun."

"Me, too. Goodnight, Victoria."

* * *

Victoria drives back to Blackwell. She ends up hanging out with Taylor for a while as they both do homework.

She considers texting Chloe. She decides against it. Better to make Chloe wait a day or two. Better for her to learn that they're doing things Victoria's way, now.

Victoria goes to sleep much more easily that night.

* * *

The next day, Victoria's running a little late for English when someone blocks her path.

Chloe.

Victoria's heart starts pounding. The corridor is otherwise empty, but that might not last. She scowls and says, "Get out of my face, or-"

Chloe grabs her waist and hauls her over to a nook formed between a row of lockers and the corridor wall. Chloe shoves her roughly against the peeling paint and thin steel.

Victoria gasps. "What are you doing?" She can't seem to raise her arms. Her legs are jelly. Her body is _burning_.

Chloe grins.

She whispers, "Teaching you French."

She leans in and she doesn't kiss Victoria. Chloe _claims_ her. Her mouth tastes like lust and spearmint.

Victoria's arms come to life, latching onto Chloe's shirt and pulling her in tight against her. She can feel Chloe grinning into her mouth, and the heat of her, the pressure of her lean torso, her smell, her lips, her tongue, her _taste_ , the totality of Chloe sinks into Victoria.

Victoria's moan turns into a whine when Chloe breaks off. She's horrified by that lost puppy sound, by the knowledge that someone can make Victoria Chase produce a noise like that.

Chloe stares at her for a moment. She leans in and kisses Victoria just once more: slow, soft, too swift.

Chloe pulls away a few inches. Victoria stares up at her, wordless.

Chloe grins.

"Y'know, Vic...I think this _is_ gonna be fun!"

When Chloe goes, it's only the locker behind her that prevents Victoria from puddling onto the floor.

* * *

Mrs. Hoida gives her a lecture on punctuality when she finally gets to English.

Chloe doesn't answer any of her texts for the rest of the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had too much fun with this. I blame the rare, multi-day appearance of actual sunshine where I live.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	4. Immune Response

For a while, it kind of works.

Once or twice a week, Victoria picks a place on the fringes of Arcadia Bay for them to meet up. They get together and talk over coffee of varying degrees of shittiness and whatever gross delight Chloe finds on the menu.

Victoria tries to navigate their coversation around dangerous things, like feelings other than like or lust. They talk about life, rather than their lives.

Chloe isn't exactly passive on their...get togethers. But she usually seems content to follow Victoria's lead.

Sometimes, though, one of them will say something and Chloe will get that look in her eye. The one that asks questions Chloe never does. The one that puts a weird feeling into Victoria's stomach.

The moment always passes, but as the weeks go by, the feeling gets worse.

If they're in the mood after they talk, which they almost always are, they hop into Victoria's car and find somewhere quiet and...try things.

Just makeouts. Nothing too heavy. Nothing that leaves marks.

Well, _obvious_ marks.

Usually.

Victoria does get carried away one evening and digs her nails deep into Chloe's skin, leaving welts on her back and sides.

Chloe's retaliation is less subtle, but it's winter, so Victoria can at least wear a scarf over a fuckload of concealer over her hickie.

Chloe listens to Victoria's annoyed rant after that incident with a smug grin on her face. Maybe because she knows that as soon as Victoria's done yelling, she'll want to get back to making out.

Which Victoria does.

That much _always_ works.

* * *

At Blackwell, things are different.

Chloe has all the control. She finds so many ways to ambush Victoria.

Chloe will wear a look of blank indifference when they pass each other in the halls. Until suddenly it becomes a smirk, or a silly face, or, once, a piercing look and a lick of the lips that makes Victoria drop her phone.

Or maybe there's a shoulder bump in a busy corridor. Or the brush of Chloe's hand against hers. Or other touches that could be mistaken for a jostle or missed altogether.

Stolen kisses, like that first time, are rare. Maybe that's why Victoria never sees them coming.

One moment she's the queen of Blackwell, stalking her domain. Not even Rachel Amber can bother her, because she has something Rachel can't touch.

No one can touch her. She's invincible.

The next moment, Chloe is there, grinning and dragging her into a bathroom stall, or behind a locker, or into an empty classroom. They kiss and Victoria's heart somehow doesn't burst. Chloe backs away, grinning, and Victoria has to take a moment just to remember how to breathe.

Once, just once, Chloe appears in an otherwise empty quad and takes her hand. They walk ten metres together in silence. It's the only time Victoria isn't afraid they'll get caught.

For those few seconds, she isn't afraid of anything at all.

* * *

There are other times that are not so good.

There's the time Chloe shows up when Logan has Daniel DaCosta in a headlock and is giving him a noogie.

Victoria finds Logan's bullying almost as pathetic as she considers Daniel to be. She sees no reason to get involved.

There's maybe a dozen other students around, watching or carefully ignoring Logan. No one interferes.

Until Chloe shows up. She frowns at all of them, but her gaze lingers on Victoria.

Victoria gets that weird thing in her stomach. She shakes her head, very slightly.

Chloe snorts. She steps deliberately into Logan's vision.

Victoria feels several emotions twist themselves into a knot around the weirdness.

Logan's grin fades when he sees Chloe.

The texture of the air changes. There are no adults in sight.

Chloe says, "Let him go, asshole."

Her voice isn't loud. Maybe that's why everyone gets very quiet. Even Daniel stops squirming.

Logan's jaw works. "The fuck did you say?"

Chloe sighs. "You heard me, shithead. Do I have to remind you which of us hits like a girl..." Chloe points at herself. "...and which of us cries like a baby?"

Chloe points at Logan.

Victoria gasps.

Logan turns red.

Logan licks his lips. He glances quickly around him. Victoria catches his eye. She quickly shakes her head.

Logan glares at Chloe again.

Each one of the three seconds that follows fills the hallway with emotions too large to be complex, too full of momentum to pin down.

Finally, Logan relaxes his grip on Daniel. He grunts, "Whatever. Fucking nobodies."

Logan shoves Daniel into the lockers and strides away.

The shame on Daniel's face when Chloe murmurs to him is not enough to break Victoria.

It's Taylor that does it, when she says, "Look at that! Two losers in love."

Victoria blurts an excuse and flees to the bathroom, before she has to see Chloe's eyes again.

It's something they don't talk about on their next rendezvous.

* * *

Or there's the time they leave Deke's Diner, idly bickering, and pile into Victoria's car. Victoria leans in for a kiss but Chloe pulls away.

"Wait, wait. Let me just get this right. You haven't seen _Blade Runner_? Or any early Ridley Scott? And you claim to be a photography geek?"

"I'm a photographer. Not any kind of geek."

And while that might not be entirely true, what matters is this: the gross diner was for talking. The car is for kissing. Victoria wants to get to the kissing. She leans in again.

Chloe gives her a distracted peck, then turns her lips away. Undeterred, Victoria works her way down Chloe's jaw, to her neck.

"Suuure you aren't. Fuck! Uh, but, seriously. You must've, huh, at least seen _Alien_ , right?"

"That's...the one with...the couple in Mexico?"

To Victoria's considerable annoyance, Chloe gently pushes her away.

"Jesus! How can you not have seen Ridley Scott's best work?"

"Because I'm not a horror nerd? Why would I-"

" _Blade Runner_ isn't...look, the photography in those movies is insane! That's why."

Chloe turns to face her as fully as possible. Her eyes are bright. Her hands gesture with the graceful articulation of an orchestral conductor.

Chloe's so beautiful, when she's like this.

"Dude, the way he worked with artists and designers to build sets and create actual out of this world compositions...his framing...I mean, it's not your style, or whatever, but you'll still be like, how'd he make that shot happen? 'Cause even if you don't like the films, the images are inspirational, for sure! And you will _love_ them, I guarantee! God, we absolutely _have_ to...uh."

Victoria blinks. She feels like she emerges from a trance when Chloe's enthusiasm gutters out.

Victoria says, "What?"

"Nothing. Just, you should check out the movies some time. If you want."

Chloe turns away.

Victoria bites her lip. "...yeah, I will. When I have time."

Chloe's smile is bitter. "Yeah. Speaking of, I need to go."

"What? Oh. Are you-"

"I'm fine. Other than, y'know, it being a school night. Someone keeps giving me shit about that sort of thing."

Victoria frowns. There are a lot of things Victoria wants to say. But she just says, "It's good you're taking things more seriously."

Chloe stares at her. "Yeah. Serious is good, right? Well, see you around."

They kiss, because Victoria closes the gap between them. It's brief, because Chloe pulls away.

* * *

Still, things kind of work.

Almost all the way to Thanksgiving.

It's Tuesday evening. Tomorrow, Victoria's driving to Seattle to endure her parents over the break. Tonight, Victoria's busy getting ready for her appointment with Chloe.

They won't see each other again for at least a week. Victoria's determined to make this encounter something Chloe won't forget.

She's still agonising over the perfect ensemble when Chloe's message comes in.

_Bud: cant do tonite not feeling good_

Victoria frowns. It's been a week since they last got together. Things have been...good. More good than bad, anyway.

Chloe's kisses haven't gotten any less hungry.

Things are fine.

Victoria deletes three different messages before she finally sends one.

_Me: You're ill? That sucks. It's our last chance before I leave for Thanksgiving, though. I already have your cooties. I'm willing to risk your cold or whatever._

_Bud: Not fit 2 b social not going anywhere though so chill enjoy ur break_

Victoria feels that knot form again in her stomach. It's of the Gordian variety. She can't seem to safely pick it apart.

_Me: I'm getting worried. You're missing out on your last chance to piss me off for ages. You're not dying are you?_

Victoria waits twenty seconds. She sends another text.

_Me: We don't have to do anything. I just wanna see you before break._

Victoria quietly hates herself for that last message, until the response comes in.

_Bud: lol not dying just feeling shitty_

_Bud: but ur helping with that_

_Bud: being so hella gay an all_

_Bud: gonna miss me?_

_Bud: dont worry my cooties will keep u company they're rambunctious like me_

Victoria snorts.

_Me: I will miss you. But not your cooties when I get my shot. Get well soon, okay?_

_Bud: Is that an order?_

_Me: A royal decree._

_Bud: Shit! I woulda worn underwear if id known that ur majesty_

Victoria giggles and blushes and wonders when the fuck she became someone who did either of those things.

_Me: Do I even want to know why you arent wearing underwear?_

_Bud: I like 2 save it for state visits_

_Me: If the only time you're wearing underwear is on our dates, you're doing something wrong._

Victoria only becomes aware of how much she's been grinning when the word 'date' stops her.

Neither of them have used that word before.

_Bud: dude were dating?! Holy shit gonna wear 2 pairs next time 2 celebrate_

Victoria starts pacing.

_Me: Please don't. And what would you call what we've been doing?_

_Bud: Id call it dating but i cant cuz u get weird about that stuff_

Victoria stares at her phone, frozen. The knot in her stomach tightens. "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

She's not sure how long she stays frozen, but it's long enough for Chloe to message her again.

_Bud: u there? please dont freak_

Victoria grits her teeth. She can't deal with this right now. She needs to pack and work on the portfolio she's submitting to the Viridian Gallery.

She has more important priorities than Chloe.

_Me: Taylor's here. Sorry, got to go. Have a good break._

Victoria waits a long time before Chloe responds.

_Bud: okay safe trip talk 2 u when u get back_

Victoria reads and re-reads their exchange and tries to understand why the knot keeps getting tighter.

* * *

Wednesday morning Victoria puts her bags in the trunk of her car. She's behind schedule. She hasn't had much sleep.

If she's late, that's all she'll hear about for the rest of Thanksgiving. Until she does or says something else her parents decide they need to give her shit about.

Maybe it's that thought that makes her grab her cigarettes, lock her car, and walk to the football field.

Her grades have been good and she's been adding shots she's almost proud of to her portfolio. But there's always something for them to criticise, no matter how well she does. Why the fuck should she rush for that?

Victoria smells weed and hesitates before making her way behind the bleachers.

Her stomach flips and her heart starts playing something up-tempo when she sees who's there.

"Chloe!"

Chloe blinks. She looks at Victoria blankly. "Oh. Hey."

Victoria pauses.

Chloe looks...off. She looks like she slept in her clothes. She looks like she's barely slept at all.

Victoria walks slowly towards her.

Chloe's wearing more makeup than usual.

Specifically, concealer. It's been crudely caked on.

Chloe frowns, as if just realising Victoria's there. "Vic? Shouldn't you be gone?"

Victoria stops a few feet away from Chloe.

"I'm leaving soon. I was looking for a quiet place to smoke."

"Oh." Chloe's hand shakes as she takes a drag on her joint.

"Are you okay?"

Chloe's quiet for a moment. "Vic?"

"What?"

"Could you just...go?"

" _What_?" 

"Not in the mood for fun right now, 'kay?"

It stings, even though Chloe's tone is flat.

"What the fuck? Chloe, what's wrong? You're not sick. What...did something happen?"

Chloe closes her eyes. "I can't right now. Not with you."

Victoria takes a step back. Her voice has never sounded weaker when she says, "Chloe? I don't-"

Chloe groans. "It's not you, okay? I'm a mess, that's all. I-I don't want you seeing me like this. Go enjoy your break. I'll be fine by the time you get back. It's okay."

Victoria's knuckles pop. She blinks and unclenches her hands, with difficulty. 

"I'm going to have a cigarette before I go. If you don't want to share the bleachers..."

Chloe opens her eyes. Wary.

Victoria extracts the only undamaged cigarette left in the crumpled packet. She lights up, takes a drag, and meets Chloe's stare.

"Then fuck off somewhere else, Price."

Chloe gapes at her. Suddenly, she snorts out something like a laugh. "You're a complete shit, Victoria. Just a horrible human being."

Victoria gasps. "Moi? How could you even?"

Chloe laughs, weakly.

Victoria stays quiet for a few more puffs.

"Were you in a fight?"

Chloe grimaces. "Not exactly."

Chloe doesn't say another word after that. Victoria can't think of a useful thing to say for the rest of her cigarette.

When she's done, she thinks about hugging Chloe.

But the knot is clenching in her stomach.

Victoria can't cut through it.

"I have to go. I...I'll see you when I get back?"

Chloe stares at her, like she does sometimes, searching and searching Victoria's face.

Victoria doesn't know what Chloe's looking for. She tries a smile.

Chloe nods, wearily. "Yeah. Drive safe."

Victoria gets as close as she can. She kisses the cheek with the poorly hidden bruise on it.

"You be safe, too. I'll see you soon. And...you can call me. If you want?"

Chloe smiles. It looks real. "Okay. Now get out of here, already. I reek."

Victoria snorts. "I'm used to it. Au revoir, cherie."

* * *

Victoria worries all the way to the lot. She pauses at the steps and seriously considers calling her parents and telling them she can't make it.

But she can't think of a good enough lie to tell them. And she can't tell them about Chloe.

She chews her lip, a nervous habit she thought long ago corrected. She pulls out her phone and scrolls down to her mother's number.

Victoria hesitates, thumb poised. She turns to look at the football field, just in time to see a flash of long blonde hair disappearing behind the bleachers.

Victoria worries about what _that_ means all the way to Seattle.

* * *

Thanksgiving is awful.

Her parents aren't even mildly snippy. Instead, her father asks her about this Prescott boy she's been spending so much time with.

Her mother points out that the Prescotts are real patrons of the arts. She opines that Nathan is a real catch.

They smile at her throughout the very long weekend.

Chloe doesn't call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, folks.
> 
> See you soon.


	5. Isolation

Thanksgiving dinner is just Victoria and her parents. No important guests to impress. No distant family whose names she'll never remember.

It's too casual an affair to allow Victoria to entirely relax.

It's not the sort of atmosphere she associates with being home. Home isn't where Victoria's heart lies. It's the place her heart was refined in the crucible of her parents' expectations. Lying around wasn't an acceptable part of anyone's agenda.

Thanksgiving this year is like...actually being on holiday. Her parents don't lecture her. They don't feel the need to spend family time furthering what her father likes to call 'Victorian Exceptionalism.'

There's no mention of her A- in English. Nothing but commiserations over her rejection from the Mortimer Gallery. It's almost enough to make her think that she's passed some threshold between Arcadia Bay and Seattle. That her Chase Club membership has finally been processed, granting her full rights and privileges.

But the truth seems more likely to be found in her parents' clumsiness regarding Nathan Prescott's name.

They keep dropping it.

In spite of Victoria's protests, her mother's cheerful but relentless line of questioning seems to convince both her father and mother that Victoria and Nathan are far closer than they are.

She does like Nathan. He's been a better friend than most she's ever had. He doesn't fawn or try to win her over. He's not impressed by her wealth.

Victoria decides that Nathan is her only real option for venting about her parents' new pathology. Victoria's growing quite fond of Taylor, too, but she likely won't be much use. Taylor's nice, but God that girl could use some spine.

Victoria texts Nathan late on Thursday. She doesn't tell him everything, of course. Just that her parents are being weird about the two of them hanging out. It does help to get some of it off her chest, even if Nathan seems to find the situation hilarious.

He asks if she wants him to spend Christmas at the Chases.

She extends him an open invitation to go fuck himself.

He finds that hilarious, too.

Long after their exchange is over, Victoria keeps checking her phone. She gets a number of holiday well-wishes, including a sweet, and almost certainly tipsy, message from Taylor.

Victoria tries to will sleep to come.

She tells herself it's not her fault if her parents want to think that she's dating Nathan. She tells herself that it's easier to go along with it for now, and that she should just enjoy her holiday.

But Victoria knows she won't enjoy herself. She feels too guilty.

She tells herself that she's not sure what she feels guilty about.

Victoria keeps checking her phone late into the night, hours after the other messages stop coming.

* * *

On Friday, her mother takes her Shopping.

Victoria makes it through the morning with a few yawns and the appearance of good grace.

She's even in danger of forgetting everything and having fun until her mother takes them to the Bellefleur Lingerie Boutique.

Victoria loses track of her mother amidst the furor her entrance causes and loses herself in browsing.

She spends too much time staring at a particular set and thinking about long, pale fingers.

Victoria is badly startled when her mother glides over and murmurs into her ear, "It can be so difficult to choose, can't it? When we want to make an impression on someone special."

Victoria blushes. She hates herself for showing such obvious weakness. She snaps, "Don't do that! And I'm not trying to impress Nathan! I'm not trying to impress a-anyone."

"Victoria. Please. You've never been the most difficult person to read. You think I don't notice the way your eyes light up whenever you get a message? Or how disappointed you look when it's not from...ah, anyone?"

Victoria folds her arms and squeezes her elbows. She says nothing.

Her mother sighs. "I just don't understand why you won't open up about Nathan. It's not like he's some undesirable...well, I'm trying to say that your father and I approve!"

Victoria snorts. "Jesus, mother! I've already told you everything about Nathan! There's nothing else to say about Nathan! Can we talk about _anything_ else?"

Her mother pauses for a moment. She says, "Alright. Just...does he make you happy?"

"Oh, God, mother! I keep telling you. It's not like that!"

Her mother sighs. "I suppose you're right. You're still young. There'll be plenty of time for happiness when you're established."

And that's so perfectly _her_. It's the sort of remark Victoria has heard in so many contexts that the familiarity of it calms her, to the point that she doesn't really worry about the meaning of it. 

Later, she'll lose sleep over the exchange, but at the time she just rolls her eyes. "Whatever. Can we get out of here?"

Her mother laughs. "Are you sure you don't want to buy anything? You looked quite keen a minute ago."

Ears burning, Victoria storms away. She waits for her mother outside, feeling awkward and foolish and in urgent need of nicotine.

Her mother wears a smug grin for the rest of the afternoon.

* * *

Victoria's phone rings for the first time on Saturday night while she's packing for her return to Blackwell.

She grabs her phone eagerly, but when she picks up, it's her father on the line.

He says, "Victoria, could you come to my office in fifteen minutes? Thank you."

He hangs up before she can reply.

For ten minutes, Victoria paces anxiously. It's only when she sees herself in her mirror that she realises she's chewing her lip.

Exactly fifteen minutes later she knocks on his office door.

"Come," he calls out.

Victoria has only been allowed into this office when her father has asked her to Explain Herself.

She wonders for the first time if she ever actually has.

He's decorated since last time. The old office furniture is gone, replaced with a walnut desk at an angle in one corner facing a chaise lounge.

It's a bit like a psychiatrist's couch, but facing the imposing desk and her father's high-backed chair, it leaves the person sitting on it low and exposed.

Vulnerable.

Victoria's father makes her wait while we he finishes typing something on his computer. She stands behind the chaise. She knows better than to sit without his permission or to stand too close while he's working.

Victoria looks at the new art on the walls, vibrant explosions of colour in an otherwise quiet room. She doesn't fidget. She tries desperately not to sweat.

After five minutes in which an unknowable number of galaxies are born, live, and die, her father looks up.

"Ah, Victoria."

"Sir."

"Come on, let's sit. I want to talk to you."

He gestures to the opposite corner where pristine white leather armchairs sit perfectly aligned with a low, glass-topped table.

Victoria sinks into one of the seats. It's very comfortable. She suspects that she's the first person to sit on it.

Her father detours to a cabinet. He produces two crystal glasses and a bottle of whisky. He pours each of them two fingers and carries the glasses over.

"In front of your mother we can both pretend you don't drink. But I'm not unaware of how teenagers are. Still. I expect you haven't had a Yamazaki 18 before. Sip and savour, Victoria."

He does, so she follows suit. It tastes fierce and deeply unpleasant at first. That's followed by a sensation that feels like a distress flare sparking in her core.

Her father chuckles at her expression. "It takes getting used to, but it's a taste worth cultivating. And don't go believing anyone who tells you that Scottish whiskies are the be-all and end-all. The Japanese have mastered the art and are producing some of the world's best."

He takes another swallow and gives a contented sigh.

"I'll remember that, sir." Victoria wonders if there's anything resembling a fucking point to all of this.

Her father gives her a piercing look. "I wanted to talk to you about the Prescotts."

"What about them?" She risks another sip. It's disgusting, but it's alcohol.

"Your mother seems keen to foster a romance. You've never really had a boyfriend before."

Victoria tries not to wriggle in her seat. She puts her glass down. She doesn't want to leave smears on the crystal.

She says, "I've always been too busy. But, sir, I'm not..."

Her father holds up his hand.

"I've noticed that you've been uncomfortable at the mention of the boy. Dathan?"

"Nathan! Uh, sir, it's Nathan."

He smiles faintly. "I know. And now I know that you're protective of him, too. You've always been sentimental. Well, in front of your mother, we can pretend it's a romance. But it isn't, is it?"

Victoria shakes her head. Her relief is overwhelming. It briefly overrides her common sense. "No, sir. He's just a friend. I'm not seeing him. Like that. I'm...well, there's-"

Victoria looks up and promptly gets her runaway mouth under control. Her father is frowning. Victoria picks up her glass and takes a sip. She closes her lips as her throat catches fire.

He nods, brow smoothing. "The boy is one thing, Victoria. The family is another. They're wealthy. They aren't merely well-connected, they're well-invested. Do you understand?"

Victoria nods. She doesn't trust herself to say anything. Her father doesn't expect her to, anyway.

"I run in some similar circles to Sean Prescott, but we're no more than passing acquaintances. This could be a valuable opportunity to build a future relationship." He smiles. "You're doing well."

This time, Victoria has to struggle to say nothing.

Her father rubs his jaw thoughtfully. "And, personally, I think it's for the best that you're not _too_ attached to the boy. You're young. Passions tend to run hot, and often burn out altogether. You can better...cultivate a relationship when you have...emotional perspective."

Victoria focuses on guiding the glass to her mouth without letting the rim click against her teeth.

He sips and savours. "Just remember to always use protection."

Victoria chokes and coughs up a fine spray of whisky that's been given more time to mature than she has. "Father! I-I don't...we're not-"

"Your grades have been acceptable. Your portfolio is developing quite well. So long as this remains the case, and you remember what I've told you, what you do with Nathan is your business. I just want my little girl to be safe. And to have the best possible future."

He finishes his drink. When she looks up, he gives her a pointed look, so she finishes hers, too.

It burns inside her. Her eyes tear up.

"We understand one another. Excellent. Good night, Victoria. Sweet dreams."

He goes back to his desk and returns to frowning and typing.

Victoria closes the door quietly behind her when she leaves.

* * *

That night Victoria spends the hours she doesn't sleep thinking about her parents.

From as far back as she can remember, they've told her not that she should do her best but that she should be _the_ best.

It was easier to embrace that philosophy when she was old enough to understand two things.

First, that her parents expect so much from her because they want so much for her.

And second, they were right about everything.

If Victoria wants to achieve great things, she needs a strong foundation. And she does want to achieve great things. She wants to make art. She wants to change lives.

Her whole life has been devoted to building the kind of foundation her parents believe she needs to succeed.

All her plans, her mental map of the cosmos of her life, have been built inside the parameters her parents created.

Which makes it deeply disturbing to realise that her parents are both utterly wrong about Nathan.

And about her.

As much as she likes Nathan, there's nothing romantic or sexual there. And using him as a means to get to his parents? Nathan hates his father more than Victoria does hers. Its one of the things they bonded over.

Her parents don't understand the situation. Her parents don't know what's best. And is her father really thinking of her? Does he even remember she's still seventeen?

It makes her wonder what else they might have gotten wrong over the years. Which really means that Victoria spends an uncomfortable amount of time thinking about all the things _she's_ been getting wrong all this time.

But even that unwelcome line of thought is just a distraction from what's really been bothering her during the small hours of the last few nights.

Though small is the wrong word. They're the hours when everything is big and irreducible and full of blunt, gnawing teeth.

As Saturday becomes Sunday, and the prospect of leaving becomes imminent, Victoria allows herself to think about what's waiting for her back at Blackwell.

And what's been worrying her the most, all this time.

Chloe hasn't called.

* * *

Victoria leaves early on Sunday. Before breakfast. Her parents don't seem particularly put out.

If anything there's a glint in her mother's eye, an approving smile on her father's lips when he says goodbye.

They don't think she's in a hurry to leave, but to arrive.

That's something else they're wrong about.

* * *

The further Victoria gets from Seattle, the more her thoughts turn to Chloe.

She's not exactly in a rush to see Chloe, though. She's not sure what sort of welcome she'll get.

At some point at a rest stop nearer Arcadia Bay than Seattle, chewing listlessly at a salad in a cafe, Victoria admits that she's not sure what sort of reception she deserves.

She doesn't get much any further with that thought. She promptly abandons her unfinished meal and flees the cafe, trying to leave her mood behind her.

It doesn't work.

Maybe that's why she stops again at a shop in a town she detours through and makes the single most embarrassing purchase of her life.

It only helps her mood in that she's distracted by to ignore what's sitting on the back seat.

She drives carefully, though, trying not to do any damage to her delicate cargo.

* * *

It's Sunday evening and already dark when she hits the outskirts of Arcadia Bay. Not that the town is much more than a series of outskirts, really.

Victoria heads straight to Blackwell. She wants to unpack, shower, and get something to eat. Maybe catch up with Taylor. Prepare for the coming school week.

These are the sensible things to do. The responsible things.

But instead of turning into the Blackwell parking lot, she drives past the school.

She drives for ten minutes without any conscious aim. She ends up outside Rose's Cafe.

Victoria idles for a minute before she sighs, parks, and goes inside.

* * *

Mary's on duty. She puts on a smile so patently insincere that Victoria's tempted to laugh.

Mary babbles amiably at Victoria until she orders an Americano. Mary doesn't stop smiling the whole time Victoria can see her. Victoria's certain that the second Mary turns her back, her lips will form an expression that better matches what's in her eyes.

Victoria can't work up much anger or even amusement. It's too hypocritical, after the way she's behaved over the weekend.

Mary returns with her coffee. Victoria just grunts at her, but Mary hovers. "Meeting your friend again?"

"I really don't know," Victoria mutters. She frowns at Mary. "I'm fine. I don't need anything else."

Mary's smile wavers but she just about holds on to it. "Alrighty, then."

Victoria inwardly curses. "Look, I had a long drive. I...didn't mean to snap."

Which is a lie, but it's what you're supposed to say, right?

Mary's smile softens into something small but genuine. "No worries, honey. Gimme a shout if you need anything else."

"Okay." Victoria tries to turn her reflexive grimace into a smile. "Thanks."

Victoria slumps in the ugly chair and tries to clear some of the thoughts that have been crowding her since Wednesday out of her head. She needs some space to actually _think_.

Victoria wonders where Chloe is. Around this time on a Sunday she'll be...

Victoria's frown deepens. It occurs to her that, outside of school and their get togethers, Victoria has no idea where Chloe goes. She has very little idea of what Chloe does.

Didn't she mention liking that waterfront diner? The Two Whales?

It's not somewhere Victoria would take Chloe. It's too close to Blackwell. Even Nathan eats there sometimes!

Victoria sips her coffee. It's worse than last time.

She pauses, though, as a thought occurs. Something her father said.

Emotional perspective.

He meant, of course, not having any fucking emotions. But he might just have been right about something after all.

She's been trying to ignore her feelings, her worries, for the entire break.

Her stomach clenches.

Maybe it's time to try to cut through the knot.

They've been seeing each other for over a month and Victoria doesn't really know who Chloe is.

She clearly doesn't know what's going on in Chloe's life.

Why?

Because she hasn't really tried to find out.

And the truth is, Victoria doesn't want to have sex with Chloe.

Well, she does. Very much so, in fact. Just the thought of it causes a very different kind of heat to spread through her. Something that dispels the bitter memory of the whisky malingering in her belly, something that loosens the knot.

But she wants more than sex.

She wants to know who Chloe is.

She wants Chloe to be okay.

She wants...she can't quite admit it, even here. Not while Mary's watching.

The point is, Victoria has no idea how to make any of that happen.

It's not that she's in uncharted territory. She's not so weak-willed as to suppose her position is unique. It's just that she hasn't the skills required to plot a course from this point.

Absurdly, she asks herself what Chloe would do.

Victoria snorts. She mutters, "Something dumb. Something spontaneous."

Victoria thinks about the dumb gift in her car. She stops chewing her lip.

She digs out her phone. She sends a message to Chloe.

She doesn't finish her coffee, but she does leave Mary an even bigger tip than last time.

Victoria doesn't wait around to see if Mary wants to thank her. She strides briskly to her car and heads back into Arcadia Bay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whaddya mean three and a half weeks isn't soon?
> 
> Sorry about that. I went down a lot of wrong turns working on this one. Hopefully we're all headed in the right direction now!
> 
> Thanks very much for reading, and for your patience. I will try not to leave you hanging so long next time.
> 
> I'm going to have a bit of a lie down, but please feel free yell at me in the comments.


	6. Nacre

Chloe's reply is just one word: sure.

There's not much to make of it, but Victoria tries to dissect it for clues on the short drive anyway.

Chloe is agreeing to meet, which is good. But that single word, that's a bad sign. To Chloe, unlimited texts are not a contractual incentive, but a challenge.

That terse response after days of silence after whatever happened that Chloe wouldn't talk about...it all worries Victoria.

But Victoria's been operating on not enough sleep in a hostile environment for the last few days. She's tired. In the end, it's the tiredness that makes her push doubt and worry aside when she pulls into the Two Whales' parking lot.

The diner is quiet when Victoria goes inside. Just a handful of truckers and fishermen eating at the counter and a few other people occupying a couple of booths.

There's no one from Blackwell in sight. Victoria is able to relax until she realises that she finds the idea of no students being around to be relaxing.

Victoria finds a booth, flags down a waitress and gets to work on the evening's second cup of bad coffee.

The next fifteen minutes are spent bumping against then shying away from the various internal sources of her discomfort.

The coffee doesn't do much to the fog in her mind. It just seems to make her hands tremble and her leg jitter.

Victoria tunes out the rest of the diner entirely until a voice says, "Well, you look like shit."

Victoria blinks and looks up, startled.

She really shouldn't be. There's only one person who would dare talk to her that way.

Chloe's here.

Victoria's heart does something complicated and aerobic.

Chloe looks better. Chloe looks _good_.

The bruises must have faded already, because she's back to just her regular makeup. She's wearing another of those vests she's so fond of, and what looks like new jeans.

She's smirking, too; that fucking infuriating pre-grin twist of her lips that she wears so well.

Victoria drinks her in. The first thing that comes to mind tumbles out of her mouth. "You got your hair cut."

It's shorter than before, though not as short as Victoria's. It suits her.

Chloe gives her a weird look. "Yeah, and you appear to have given up sleep for Lent."

Victoria shakes her head in an attempt to clear it. "It's not Lent for months."

Chloe's smile is gone. "And yet you've not been sleeping."

Victoria didn't think it was that obvious. Chloe studies her. Her expression becomes fierce. The last time Victoria saw Chloe look like that was when she stood up to Logan.

Victoria does what she always does when she feels overwhelmed. She snaps, "Are you sitting?"

Chloe sits. Her movements are stiff. The only time Chloe's less than fluid is when she's angry. So Victoria's surprised when Chloe softly asks, "Are you okay, Vic?"

"I'm _fine_."

Chloe rolls her eyes and starts to sit back. "Right. Sure."

Victoria plants her elbows on the table and leans towards Chloe. "I mean, apart from being worried about _you_. Because _you_ looked like shit when I left. And I didn't hear a single word from you. You _asshole_."

Chloe gapes at her. "What?"

Victoria feels that knot again, but it's loosening this time, and she starts talking, urgently, "Somebody _hit_ you. And you were being weird and I was-"

Chloe's jaw tightens. That's all the warning Victoria gets before Chloe's lunging at her across the table. Her voice is a low growl. "You just want to give me shit for not calling? If you were so worried about me, why didn't _you_ text me or-"

"You told me to go away! You made me fucking leave! I didn't know what was happening. I didn't know if...if you even wanted to talk to me again..."

"Well, that's just ridiculous! I mean, I just...I didn't-"

"You didn't think I'd be enough...how did you put it? Oh, yes: _fun_."

"That's _not_ what I said...fuck it! You want to make this all about you? Why not? Victoria Chase is the only one who matters, not a loser like-"

"Shut the FUCK up, Chloe!"

They're as close to each other as the table between them allows. It feels like they're very far apart. 

Chloe's face is flushed and her words are angry. But Victoria's spent too much time using anger as a shield not to recognise what Chloe's doing.

Victoria takes a deep breath and tries to keep her voice level. "I don't like it when you say things like that. It's not true."

Chloe slumps. She sits back and sighs. "Shit. I...I don't want to fuck up this goodbye, too. I mean, that's why I didn't call, because...it'd suck to end it over the phone, y'know? I wasn't really ready for that..."

Victoria freezes. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

Chloe wrings her beanie in her hands. "Look, I know you were never serious about...just...I dunno. Let's rip off the band aid already. We're done. That's what this is, right?"

Victoria's knuckles whiten around her mug. "Chloe...are you _actually_ brain damaged?"

Chloe looks torn between wanting to cry and wanting to stab Victoria with a fork.

She settles for whispering, "What the fuck, Vic..."

"Chloe, I...come to my car, okay? I need to show you something."

Chloe narrows her eyes. "Why would I do that?"

Victoria gets up. "Because this conversation is too stupid to be allowed to live. Because I'm telling you to." 

Chloe looks unconvinced.

"Chloe...just fucking do it. Please?"

Chloe's a perfect picture of petulance on the walk to the car. Her head's down, her bottom lip is thrust out, her hands are jammed into her pockets, and her elbows thrust out like porcupine quills. Suspicion is not so much written as emblazoned in neon on her face.

Incongruous as it is in the moment, Victoria can't help but find Chloe's expression weirdly adorable. Victoria wishes she had a camera with her.

It's not the first time Victoria's wanted to photograph Chloe. It's the first time she admits to herself that she doesn't know how to ask for permission, not without upsetting the status quo.

It's the first time she feels like that wouldn't be a bad thing.

"What are we doing, Victoria?" Chloe's glaring at her, but there's no real heat behind it.

Victoria sighs. "I was driving back from Seattle and I was thinking about....everything and then I saw this sign, and I went to this store, and it was just about to close, and..."

"Vic? You're babbling."

Victoria opens the rear door of her car and leans in. "Just take the fucking things and don't you dare laugh."

Victoria backs out of the car and shoves a bouquet of roses at Chloe.

Chloe freezes for a second. Her hands come out of her pockets slowly. Slowly, she takes the flowers. She peers at Victoria over the top of them.

"You...bought me flowers?"

"You said you liked roses!" Victoria somehow makes it sound like expressing that particular preference is akin to confessing murder.

"I do. You know..." There's the glimmer of Chloe's teeth picked out by the bulb of a lonely streetlight. "This is easily the cheesiest thing anyone's ever done for me."

Victoria scoffs and folds her arms. "You're welcome!"

"I'm serious! You left a Chase, but you came back Victoria Cheese."

"You did not just fucking call me that!"

"Oh, this is only the beginning, Cheese. This opens up all sorts of possibilities. This is going to brie fun!"

"Oh, God! Well, now I actually _want_ to dump you."

They both get quiet. Chloe avoids Victoria's eye by dipping her head towards the roses. She inhales softly through her nose. She smiles.

"Vic? Thanks. This is...really nice."

Victoria frowns at her foot, which is busy scraping back and forth along the blacktop. "I missed you."

"I wasn't in a great place when you left. I...may have misread our situation. A bit."

Victoria snorts. "Maybe just a little. Idiot." Victoria glances up and quickly back down. Chloe's still watching her over the roses. Victoria can feel that fucking knot in her stomach, but she forces herself to mutter, "Not that I make it easy for you."

Chloe chuckles. "You're not _that_ opaque, sister. I just get in my head about things. And I've got stuff that...well." She pauses. "Ah, shit. I should've called."

Victoria shrugs. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I wasn't. But I'm better now. See?"

Chloe moves closer. Victoria looks at her. "Want to talk about it?"

Chloe's expression closes off. Her body tightens. "There's nothing you can do."

Victoria wants to make some protest. Some grand declaration. But that won't help Chloe right now. It won't help either of them. So she nods, reluctantly. "Alright. Not right now, then."

Chloe frowns. "Look, I don't want to get into that-"

"Chloe!" Victoria remembers a flash of long blonde hair. Anger starts to build, but she forces it down. This is not the time for accusations or interrogations. "I already said not now. That's as much as I'll concede."

This time, Victoria has to force herself to stop talking.

Chloe seems to notice. She nods, stiffly. "Fine."

Victoria reaches for her cigarettes. "We've got other shit we need to talk about."

Abruptly, Chloe slumps. The bouquet dangles from her fist. "Yeah. Probably help if I didn't jump down your throat every time you open your mouth, huh?"

"Well, you've made better use of your tongue with me." Victoria smirks as she lights up. She smokes with her left arm curled round her body, her right elbow propped in her left hand.

Chloe leans against Victoria's car, less than a foot between them. "Victoria Maribeth Cheese! What a filthy mind you've got!"

"If you call me that again, I'll take my flowers back."

Chloe gasps and whips the roses behind her back. "No way, dude. You'll have to fight me!"

"I think I'm done fighting for a while, Chloe. I'm fucking exhausted."

Even Victoria's surprised by how bitterly she says it. She looks away from Chloe. She drops her cigarette and grinds it out beneath her foot. She folds her arms across her chest.

Chloe doesn't say anything. She puts the roses on top of Victoria's car. She puts her arms around Victoria. For a moment, Victoria just stands there. Chloe tugs, gentle but insistent, and Victoria finally leans into her. Victoria hisses, "Fuck!" She unfolds her arms and shuffles around and returns the hug.

It's awkward. Right up until it isn't, and it's just a good thing that's happening. It's simple, and warm, and makes Victoria feel safe.

Victoria lays her head on Chloe's shoulder. She closes her eyes and breathes in the scent of Chloe's skin, and her cheap deodorant. Chloe's warm breath tickles her ear.

Victoria says, "Your breath's usually minty."

"Huh? Oh. I didn't think I was getting lucky tonight."

"You probably would be, even though you're an asshole. But I'm fucking wiped."

"Yeah, I can tell." Her voice softens. "Hey. I feel pretty lucky, though. I'm glad you're back."

Victoria smiles into Chloe's neck. Reluctantly, she lifts her head and tries to pull away from the embrace. Suddenly it feels like her bones are full of lead and her lungs full of cotton. Chloe sways and almost loses her balance when Victoria leans into her again.

"Shit! Okay, someone needs to get to their bed. You okay to drive? I can run you back to Blackwell."

Victoria makes an effort and disentangles herself from Chloe. She shakes her head. "I'll be okay. All my shit's in the car and if we take that, what will you do? Walk back?"

"I don't mind..."

Victoria scrubs her face with her palms. She paces the length of her car and back. "I'll be fine. Just need a minute or two and I'll be good to drive. It's not far."

Chloe looks doubtful, but she shrugs. "Well, if you're sure..."

Victoria walks over to her and kisses her on the cheek. "I am. Sorry to cut this short..."

Chloe gives Victoria a sombre look. "Nah. It's probably for the best. You're right, we've got shit to work out. Better do that with clear heads."

That helps wake Victoria up. "Alright. I'll figure out where we can..." It's just a flash, there and gone, but Chloe's irritation is still plain to see. Victoria curses herself. "I mean, why don't you text me when you're free. With where you want us to meet?"

Chloe raises an eyebrow. "You sure?"

"Did I stutter? Don't make me repeat myself."

"Whatever you say, Miss Ch-"

"I'm leaving! Get your shit off my car."

Chloe laughs and grabs her roses. They've only been in her possession for a few minutes and Victoria can see they're looking bedraggled. She frowns. "Put those in a vase when you get home. Do you have a vase?"

"Jesus! Get out of here while I still like you."

Victoria hesitates. She gives Chloe a coy look. "How do I know you like me now?"

Chloe puts the roses down on the roof of the car. Carefully.

She gets into Victoria's space. Chloe brushes some hair away from Victoria's forehead. She kisses the clear patch of skin and Victoria sighs. Chloe's fingers trail down the side of Victoria's face and under her jaw. She gently tilts Victoria's chin up and leans in to kiss her lips.

It's not a fiery kiss. It's not the hungriest they've shared. But it's what Victoria needs in that moment, an affirmation that the distance between them has shrunk again. Victoria can still feel it, but it's bridgeable, like this.

When the kiss ends, Chloe lingers for a moment. Her hands are warm on Victoria's shoulders. One finger writes promises on the skin of her neck. Chloe keeps her forehead touching Victoria's.

Chloe whispers, "Good enough?"

Victoria nods.

They've still got a lot of things to figure out. But for the first time, they're both willing to try.

Victoria says, "Good enough." Then she adds, " _This_ time."

She pulls away and smirks at Chloe who just shakes her head. 

Chloe says, "Okay, okay! You're definitely still Victoria Chase."

Victoria isn't entirely sure what that means anymore. But she finds that she likes the way Chloe says it. Victoria musters a grin. "Best you don't forget it, cherie."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	7. First Layer

Victoria's surprised, and a little unnerved, when Chloe texts her early the following morning.

_Bud: were going on a date 2night itll b private so NO ARGUMENTS_

_Bud: dont b fancy b warm_

Chloe sends her satnav coordinates rather than the name of a meeting place, which only makes Victoria more unsettled.

Still...after being frozen out over break, and after trying so hard to spend time with Chloe without _being_ with her, Victoria doesn't feel inclined to argue. She agrees to meet up.

Blackwell isn't fucking around either, it turns out. The first day back sees her accumulate a steady pile of homework, an invitation to the next Vortex planning session, an overenthusiastic, but not unwelcome, hug from Taylor, and an invite to a Vortex inner circle drink session from Nathan.

Nathan catches up with her at lunch. He looks as well-rested and relaxed as she is.

He dumps himself beside her and declares, "My parents are fucking assholes. My sister's lucky dad let her escape this fucking hellhole. Probably because he doesn't think business can be done right without a prick."

"Parents are all assholes. Fuck my parents. Seriously."

Nathan shrugs. "Okay. As long as they haven't let themselves go. I don't do fatties."

Victoria slaps his arm. "Don't be such a fucking boy, Nate."

He laughs. "Whatever. Let's get _blitzed_ later and plan our parents' murder."

"I, uh, I can't tonight. Got to meet my French tutor."

Nathan sneers, "Oh, yeah. Bud the Canadian. It's painfully fucking obvious you're hooking up with someone. Is it Zach?"

The surge of panic Nathan's words evoke is dammed off by her indignation. "Ew! No, it's not fucking Zach!"

Nathan crows in delight. "But it's sooomeone! If you're blowing me off tonight, you're making good tomorrow. And I'll expect details, bitch."

"Nathan, please. I've just spent the last few days being grilled by my parents because they think I'm dating _you_. I don't need this shit right now."

"Holy shit, your parents are dumb! Fine, be fucking cagey. I'll let it pass. _This_ time. We're still getting our drink on tomorrow."

"You're such a needy little boy, Nate. Yes to drinks, no to murder plots."

He laughs, bitterly. "When I tell you about my Thanksgiving, you'll come around."

Victoria thinks about hers, and wonders if he has a point.

* * *

Victoria gets through the day, somehow. She doesn't see Chloe in school, and wonders if she's skipping class again.

On the plus side, she doesn't see Rachel Amber, either. It's one of the few good things about her day.

After class, she feeds Taylor the same excuse Nathan didn't swallow, and wonders if Taylor really buys it. She pretends to, at least, and that's one less pressure to deal with. Victoria's still tired, and as the time of her date with Chloe approaches, nervous, too. She's grateful that Taylor doesn't question her.

Victoria takes Chloe's instructions to heart, to the extent she wears her heaviest tights and cashmere sweater. She decides to leave her pearls, but at the last minute she puts on her silver charm bracelet, for luck.

She becomes convinced her bracelet isn't working when Chloe's directions take Victoria to a decrepit, long abandoned warehouse outside of town just as the last light begins to fade from the sky.

If Chloe's decrepit, abandoned-looking truck wasn't parked out front, Chloe nodding her head to music in the cab, Victoria would turn right around and get the hell out of there. As it is, she has to wonder if Chloe's plotting murder, too.

Chloe kills her engine and hops out of her truck as soon as Victoria's headlights wash over her. She waves and grins at Victoria.

It's infuriating how easily that grin is able to make her overlook Chloe's choice of locations to have a date.

Victoria parks and gets out of her car. She walks toward Chloe, scowling. Her nerves, and her stress, come out as irritation. "Chloe. Is this some sort of joke, or do you actually think I'm going to spend my evening here?"

Chloe laughs, unfazed. "Hey, snookums. Good to see you, too."

Victoria puts her hands on her hips and more effort into her scowl. "Did you just call me-"

Chloe pounces on her, wrapping Victoria up in a quick hug. Victoria's too startled to return it before Chloe slips out of her grasp.

"Aww, you don't like snookums? How do you feel about cutie-pie?"

"...you're high, aren't you?"

"Only on life and young love, Vic!" She pauses. "But probably on other substances, too, if my dealer had extended me credit. Which he did not. Dick." Chloe shakes her head. She grabs Victoria's hand and pulls her to the rear of her truck, spilling giggles in her wake. "Behold! Our date awaits!"

Victoria looks at Chloe's face, trying to work out how badly she's being made fun of. Chloe rolls her eyes at her, but her grin doesn't slip.

"You're supposed to look where I'm pointing, Vicky. Especially when I say shit like, 'behold!'"

Victoria looks. The tail gate of Chloe's truck is down. In the bed of the truck, illuminated when Chloe scrabbles around and clicks on a couple of flashlights, are a heap of blankets, a thermos, and a picnic hamper.

"What...is all this?"

" _This_ is us sitting on and under a shitload of blankets, drinking cocoa, eating junk food, and just chilling for a couple of hours."

Victoria scoffs at Chloe. "Come on, _that's_ your an idea of a date?"

Chloe nods eagerly. "Yup. We're hella doing this, too. You gave me the power to choose, and I'm abusing it!"

Victoria looks apprehensively at the ugly, dirty, _cold_ hunk of paint-flecked rust that is the load bed of Chloe's truck. "Uh...I don't fucking think so. I'm not going to-"

Chloe squeezes Victoria's hand. Because they're still holding hands. Victoria feels a warm thrill run through her as she becomes aware of the contact.

Chloe says, "Vic! I know things have been shitty lately. Which is exactly why we need relaxation tonight. So will you do this dumb thing with me? Pleeeeease?"

And that's it, she's fucked. She can't say no. The best she can manage is to mutter, "You're paying for my dry cleaning."

Chloe places her free hand over her heart. "I will, I swear! Uh, how much is dry cleaning? 86 cents will cover that, right?"

Victoria rolls her eyes. "Help me onto this fucking monstrosity, already. It's cold."

* * *

They build a nest for themselves in the back of Chloe's truck. Well, Chloe does, while Victoria wriggles and frets and complains.

Chloe just laughs at her, though.

The cold of the truck seeps into her even through the blanket she's sitting on. But Chloe's excitement gradually begins to warm her, putting a pleasant flutter in her stomach.

Chloe sits beside her, arranging the last blankets over them. She scoops up the thermos and pours a measure of hot chocolate for each of them into battered plastic cups. She passes Victoria hers, then nestles into the blankets, and leans her shoulder into Victoria's.

Chloe gulps at her chocolate. "Ahhh! Fuck yeah, this is the life right here!"

Victoria shakes her head. "You're a complete pleb, aren't you?"

Chloe side eyes her. "Is that snob talk for someone who likes enjoying themselves?"

"No, it's...well, okay, more or less."

"Soooo...you're kind of a pleb, too, right? Just now, at least."

"Excuse you? I'm not any kind of..." Chloe's eyes are impossibly bright and knowing. Victoria laughs, softly. "Maybe a little bit, okay?"

Chloe grins. "Heh. Careful, Chase. You might start getting used to shit like this."

Victoria sips some chocolate. She wrinkles her nose at the taste. "Unlikely."

Chloe drains her cup and puts it aside. She gestures at Victoria's. "Gimme that."

Victoria blinks. "What? No! This is mine."

"You made a face. You don't like it. I don't want it to go to waste."

Victoria takes a large gulp and pretends to savour the gritty, too sweet sludge. "It's growing on me."

Chloe laughs. "Whatever you say, Vic."

Victoria instinctively hides her smile behind her cup. She forces herself to take another sip.

Chloe sighs. "You don't have to do that, you know."

"I told you, it's growing on me."

"Not what I meant."

"Oh? What _do_ you mean?" Victoria tries to keep her tone light, but there's an edge to her words that Chloe can't possibly miss.

Chloe leans her head on Victoria's shoulder. She burrows into Victoria's side. She says, softly, "It's just...you have a nice smile, you know? Is it so bad letting people see it?"

Victoria's body stiffens. "Of course not! I don't...I don't even know what you're talking about. And I'm not the one who hides shit all the time, anyway! If we're going to talk about _personal_ shit at last, maybe it's time you-"

Chloe sighs. She slips her arm around Victoria's waist and gently squeezes her. "Nah, not tonight. Tonight we're just chilling."

Which leaves Victoria baffled, and angry. She drains the last of the chocolate and grimaces. "How did you manage to fuck up hot chocolate so badly?"

Chloe shrugs. She doesn't say anything.

Victoria grits her teeth and quietly seethes and tries not to think about how warm Chloe is, and how close, and how nice this would be, if only Victoria could let it be.

After a minute, Chloe says, "No one comes out here. Like, ever. There's plenty of nice, scenic spots to make out or bump uglies. Well, uglies and vaginas."

"Thanks _so much_ for bringing me here, then." Victoria's glad Chloe can't see her blush.

"You like privacy, right? So...this seemed the best spot to just...hang for a while. Just us."

Victoria thinks about that for a minute. Chloe holds her and Victoria unwillingly relaxes into Chloe's body.

She wants to just enjoy it, but instead Victoria shifts and says, "I need a cigarette. Can I get my arm back?"

Chloe straightens up without protest. She sits back against the side of the truck and watches Victoria light up.

After Victoria's taken two puffs, Chloe holds out her hand. "Gimme that."

Victoria glowers at her. "Fuck off, Price," she says, without any real heat.

Chloe just makes a gimme gesture with her hand.

Victoria takes in another lungful of smoke, then passes the cigarette to Chloe. She grins and quickly takes a drag. She hands it back to Victoria.

Victoria hesitates for a moment, then puts it to her lips and inhales.

Chloe holds out her hand. Victoria frowns, but, after flicking ash over the side of the truck, she hands it over.

The cigarette doesn't survive many more trips between them. So Victoria lights another. She thinks about lighting two, and just giving one to Chloe, but she doesn't. This time, she shares with Chloe without needing to be prompted.

They smoke in silence, the second cigarette, and a third.

When the third cigarette is done, Chloe stubs it out in a small flurry of sparks and tosses the butt away.

It's fully dark and much colder. Victoria hugs herself. She blurts, "Can we...?"

That's all, before her throat closes.

But Chloe seems to understand. She says, softly, "Come here, dumbass."

Victoria shuffles over to meet Chloe. It takes an awkward minute of fumbling, but they end up sprawled out under the blankets together. Chloe puts her arm around Victoria's shoulders. After a minute, Victoria leans her head onto Chloe's shoulder. After another, she gingerly slips her arm around Chloe's body.

Chloe chuckles.

Victoria mutters, "Don't fucking laugh at me."

"I'm not, I swear! I'm just _happy_ , dude!"

"Oh. Well. Don't call me dude."

Chloe laughs, and, this time, Victoria joins her.

Some languid length of time passes before Victoria pulls her head away and ventures, "I'm worried about you."

Chloe looks at her, an amused quirk to her lips. "Thanks "

"I'm serious!"

"Me, too."

Victoria starts to pull away, but Chloe gently squeezes her shoulder and she subsides. "Look. I'm not trying to fob you off, or...or shut you out. But...we've never really hung out before, you know? I kinda wanna see what that feels like."

"Um, we've hung out a lot!" It's a weak protest, one not even Victoria finds convincing.

Chloe shakes her head. "We really haven't. I'm not saying I didn't have fun, before. But...things are different, now. They _have_ to be. This is different, right?"

It is, but Victoria doesn't know how to admit that. "It's colder, smellier, and dirtier. And don't."

"Don't what?" Chloe's grinning again.

"Don't say something like-"

"You like it dirty? Please. I keep telling you, I have standards."

Victoria pulls away. She props herself up on her elbow and waves her other arm, encompassing the truck, the haunted warehouse, the musty blankets. "Such standards!"

Victoria flops down on her back, away from Chloe.

Chloe snorts. "It's _secluded_. And my truck is awesome. You're just jealous of my truck."

"It's secluded because it's fucking creepy. And your truck is a death trap."

Chloe doesn't say anything to that.

Victoria lies there for a while, trying to work out what to say. Abruptly, she turns her head and squints at Chloe. "Did you put the roses in a vase?"

"No, I put them in an old boot. Sweat's basically water, right?"

Victoria _hopes_ that's just a deadpan expression. "You're so fucking gross."

"Vic?"

"Yes?"

Chloe rolls over and faces her. "Just...try relaxing. Just for an hour, okay? Don't worry about anything and see what happens."

"Well, it really shouldn't surprise me that _this_ is how you make life decisions."

"We're not making life decisions! We're just...fucking _living_ right now! At least, _I_ am."

Victoria huffs and turns her glare on the sky. She turns back when Chloe groans.

"Look, Chase, my life is mostly a huge pile of mouldy suck. Right now, I'm just trying to enjoy hanging with you." Chloe's eyes glint dangerously in the torchlight. "Even though you are all the way over there and have proven to be the single _worst_ cuddler I've ever known."

"Bullshit!" Victoria props herself up on one elbow so she can glare down at Chloe. "I'm a fucking _great_ cuddler, bitch!"

Chloe lies back and smirks up at her. "Prove it."

Victoria knows that Chloe has been deflecting her. But Victoria's also been needlessly shitty for most of the evening. And Chloe isn't wrong, either. All the time they've had together, that hasn't been spent making out, has been kept as impersonal as Victoria can manage it. Things do need to change.

So this is something she owes Chloe. This is something she can go along with.

Victoria wriggles over to Chloe's side. She lays her head in the crook of Chloe's waiting arm and throws her arm around Chloe's middle. She squeezes Chloe as tight as she can.

"Yeah, _ow_! Now you're just kinda compressing my livers."

"You only have one liver, and that's not where it is." Victoria eases up on her grip, though.

"Wait, how do you know that? Did you steal my other liver? Is that how you got rich? Black market organ deals?"

"You can't be this dumb."

"Sounds like a challenge!"

Chloe's arm is warm around her. Victoria tries to relax into Chloe's side again, but she feels awkward about how much of an asshole she's been tonight. She mutters, "Please don't try to act more stupidly than you already do."

"Fiiine. But only because you said please." Chloe shifts around and tugs at Victoria. "Dude, come on, didn't you ever have like, a teddy or _something_? Work with me here!"

Victoria huffs and burrows aggressively into Chloe's side. She pushes her face into Chloe's neck. Chloe laughs, so Victoria snorts and pushes the top of her head against Chloe's cheek, too.

Chloe spits some of Victoria's hair out of her mouth and giggles. "Oh my God, you're just like Bongo!"

"Who the fuck is Bongo?" Victoria resists the impulse to pull away and look at Chloe's face. She's starting to get comfortable.

Chloe gently rubs her shoulder, and Victoria makes a soft, appreciative sound. "Bongo was my cat. He liked affection, but strictly on his terms."

"That sounds like a cat, yes." Victoria sighs. "That's nice, by the way."

"Yeah. This is nice. Anyway, Bongo was a fucking _particular_ cat. I couldn't pet him. I used to have to hold out my hand so he could rub against it. If I tried to pet him, he'd just shrink away. But he'd purr like crazy and rub against my hand for as long as I could hold it out."

Victoria laughs, softly. "Okay, that's weird. And kind of cute. But nothing like me."

"Riiiiight." Chloe chuckles. "God, I'd hug the shit out of that cat whenever he let me. Which was almost never." Chloe keeps rubbing Victoria's shoulder, and Victoria can feel the tension easing out of her body at last. "If I was lucky, he'd put up with it for maybe a minute. Then he'd start hissing and frantically trying to escape. He scratched the fuck out of me more than once." Chloe sighs. "I miss that little asshole."

"What happened?"

"Car."

"I'm sorry." There's a pause. Victoria tries to fill the silence. "I like cats. My dad doesn't, so we never had one. I'd play with my cousin's every time we visited, though. It was a Sphynx, so...no fur to worry about."

"Heh. Sphynxes are ugly fuckers. But they own that shit."

"Bast was cute. She had to wear a sweater in the winter. I...bought her one with my allowance, once."

"Okay, that's fucking adorable." Chloe reaches up and brushes at Victoria's bangs until she finds a clear patch of skin to kiss.

"Mmm. We did have a German Shepherd. Wagner."

"Oh, my God. Tell me you didn't name it?"

"Fuck, no. My dad named him that. When Wagner got arthritis, dad had him put down. He said it was too much effort to keep a pet anymore, so...that was that."

"Your dad has issues, girl."

"You have no fucking idea." Victoria doesn't like where _that_ might lead, so she asks, "Do you have any other pets?"

"Nah. We were going to get another cat, but...well, things...changed and we...didn't, is all..."

Chloe's voice trails off. Victoria's fingers find the edge of Chloe's shirt, and a patch of exposed skin above her hip. Slowly, carefully, she rubs circles into Chloe's skin with her fingertips.

Victoria has no idea what to do about the other edge she's come up against. She tries to back away from it. "So, have you always been a hug instigator?"

Chloe chuckles. "No...I mean, sure, I used to with my friend...but she was too shy to start a hug! It was for her own good!"

"Uh huh. Just like with Bongo?"

"Dude, don't use my dead cat against me! Well, okay, yeah, _maybe_ I'm an initiator of hugs. And cuddles. But I inherited that from my...dad." Chloe's voice abruptly tightens. "He...shit."

She swallows.

Victoria strokes her skin and says softly, "He's a big fan of hugging, too?"

"...yeah. Yeah, he was. He was...like, a fucking hug ninja, too. He'd always sneak up on me in public and pick me up. Give me a big bear hug and twirl me around. So fucking embarrassing. I used to... _fuck_ , I-I used yell at him for doing that."

Victoria can feel Chloe's tears trickling down on top of her head. She's suddenly terrified of this moment: of being in it, but moreso of breaking it.

"He sounds nice," she whispers.

Chloe's voice is thick and shaky. "Yeah. I mean, he was the most embarrassing dad ever. A-and he was like a w-walking...encyclopaedia of dad jokes. He was...he was the fucking best."

"What...happened?" Victoria asks as gently as she can.

Chloe spits out a single syllable. " _Car_."

Victoria groans. "I'm sorry, Chloe. I'm so fucking sorry."

She tries to move, to lift her head, to offer her lips, or the sorrow in her eyes. But Chloe clings to her shoulder and presses her cheek against Victoria's head. Victoria nestles back into Chloe, and Chloe loosens her grip.

Victoria runs her hand up under Chloe's shirt and gently tries to soothe the tremors from Chloe's body with her touch. She carefully says nothing while Chloe cuffs angrily at her eyes.

At length, Chloe mutters, "Uh, so...what're your folks like? Not cuddly, I'm guessing?"

For a moment, Victoria tries to think about what to say about her father. The words pour out before she's made up her mind. "My dad congratulated me at Thanksgiving because he thinks I'm fucking Nathan Prescott to get our family closer to Nate's parents. You know, for their connections in the art world."

"What the fuck...? Are you fucking serious, Vic?" Chloe doesn't sound teary, now. She sounds incredulous and incredibly pissed off on Victoria's behalf.

Victoria just nods, mussing her hair against Chloe's skin, sending her breath shivering along Chloe's collarbone. " _That's_ what he's like. My mom's not much better."

Chloe says, "Fuck, dude! I...I don't know what to say. That's really awful. What a fucking _asshole_." She seems to wrestle with herself. "You deserve better," she mutters.

There's a brittle feeling in the air and Victoria feels like anything else she says will be too heavy, will shatter the cocoon Chloe has somehow woven round them. Victoria decides to just bask in Chloe's quiet presence: her warmth, her skin, her scent, the sound of her breath and the way it tickles her head.

Victoria's hand rests on Chloe's stomach. Her fingers explore the contours of Chloe's body with no sense of urgency. It's just...nice, touching her this way.

After a long time, or a short time, or no time at all, Chloe asks, "You okay?"

Victoria is warm, relaxed, drowsy. "Don't want to talk right now."

"Okay. That's cool. You feeling sleepy?"

Victoria nods again.

"Take a nap. I've got you."

And Chloe has her, so Victoria does.

* * *

When she wakes up, she isn't sure where she is at first. She starts to pull away from the warm thing she's wrapped around, uttering a confused protest.

Chloe rubs her shoulder and says, "Shhh. You're fine. It's just me."

Victoria wakes up the rest of the way and decides that Chloe's right. She's fine. At least for now.

She decides, furthermore, that Chloe smells good. And she feels good, very good, where Victoria's hand still rests on her stomach.

Victoria snuggles into Chloe and murmurs into her neck, "How long was I asleep?"

Chloe shudders when Victoria's breath washes over her skin.

"Uh, about twenty minutes?"

"Hmm. Still early then." Victoria idly kisses Chloe's neck.

Chloe gasps. "Careful, sister. You might give a girl ideas..."

Victoria runs her hand up Chloe's body. When her hand bumps against Chloe's left breast, Chloe exhales sharply.

Victoria lifts her head and finds Chloe staring at her, eyes huge and lips parted.

Victoria says, "I like ideas. Don't you?"

Chloe swallows and nods. "Some more than others," she croaks.

Victoria smirks. "Let's see if you like this one..."

She leans in and they kiss. Victoria gently squeezes Chloe's breast, eliciting a moan that Victoria swallows greedily.

Chloe pulls away, just enough to say, "Holy fuck!"

Victoria promptly shuts her up again.

For a while, Victoria loses herself in Chloe's lips. Her hand, thinking independently, and at a genius level, works its way under Chloe's bra. Chloe squirms when Victoria runs her thumb over her nipple.

Victoria tries gently pinching it.

Chloe throws her head back and cries out. "Shit! That...that's good. Yeah, that's _good_ , Vic."

Victoria likes hearing the wonder in Chloe's voice, and the loss of control, so she leaves Chloe's mouth free and goes for her throat, and her neck, with lips, tongue, teeth. She squeezes Chloe's breast again.

Chloe groans. She tangles her legs with Victoria's. As Victoria pinches her nipple and nibbles her way down Chloe's neck, Chloe runs her hands down Victoria's back. One of her hands slides under Victoria's sweater and Victoria moans at the feel of Chloe's fingers kneading her flesh.

Victoria gasps as heat builds and builds inside her. She shifts, pressing herself tighter against Chloe, and then Chloe's thigh is between hers, and Chloe's hand is on her ass, and she's pulling at Victoria, and she's pushing her thigh up against her, and...

Victoria has a brief moment of clarity, realising that she's close to giving in to the furnace inside her and losing her virginity in the back of Chloe's shitty truck.

Chloe squeezes her ass. Victoria rolls her hips and presses herself against Chloe's thigh, sending a galvanic jolt through her core. Victoria realises that she doesn't care about anything other than those sensations anymore.

She attacks Chloe, kissing her and grinding herself against Chloe's thigh. She tries to figure out how she can get at more of Chloe's bare skin without stopping any of the things they're doing that feel so _good_. She wriggles and tries to work Chloe's t-shirt up her body.

Chloe suddenly grabs Victoria's head and kisses her for one fierce, piercing lifetime. Then she pulls away, panting out, "Stop! Stop, stop, stop!"

Victoria freezes. "What? Did I...did I do something wrong?"

Chloe's eyes widen. She frantically shakes her head. "No! No, no way! That was...so fucking hot. God, Vic!"

Victoria suddenly realises her hand is still cupping Chloe's breast. "Shit, sorry!"

Victoria tries to yank her hand away, but her bracelet gets tangled up in Chloe's bra. Chloe winces several times in the fumbling seconds that follow as they negotiate the release of Victoria's hand.

By that point, the mood is not so much dead as hanged, drawn, and quartered.

Victoria sits up and turns away from Chloe. She looks out into the night, mortified, as Chloe fixes her bra behind her.

"I...I'm sorry, Chloe. Fucking _idiot_! Shit!"

Chloe shuffles over and wraps an arm around her from behind. "Whoah! No need for that! It's not a big deal. Trust me, I've had _way_ worse happen. And, uh, before that last bit...wow, Vic."

Victoria sits stiff and unyielding. "Yeah?"

"Yeah!"

Victoria tries not to sound as pathetic as she feels at this moment. "Then why did you stop?"

"Hey. Hey, come on. Look at me."

Victoria turns her head. Chloe smiles at her. "If I hadn't stopped there, I wouldn't have been able to. And you deserve better than this." Chloe waves at the shell of the murder warehouse. "Okay? I want to. Oh, God, _believe_ me, I want to. But...there's no rush, right?"

Victoria tries to sound assured and adult. "Okay."

She winces. She sounds _reassured_ , like a bed-wetting child being tucked into fresh sheets.

Chloe kisses her gently, on the cheek, the forehead, the lips. She kisses Victoria again as punctuation to every phrase she whispers. "Everything is chill. And you are so _fucking beautiful_ , and _good_. Not even _my_ truck is good enough for your first time. And we're okay. Hey! We're okay. We're okay."

And this time Victoria hugs Chloe, and Chloe doesn't complain, even though Victoria holds her way too tight and for way too long.

* * *

They don't say much after that. They huddle under the blankets and hold hands until Victoria's curfew approaches. Maybe it should be awkward, and maybe it even is, a little. But...Victoria finds she doesn't mind the silence, or the awkwardness.

Chloe helps her out of the truck and walks Victoria to her car, holding her hand throughout.

Victoria finds she likes that.

When they're standing by her car, Victoria says, "So..."

Chloe laughs. "So...what now? Are you ready to step things up? Wanna go on a proper date with me sometime?"

Victoria finds her heart speeding up, and panic threatening to claim her. She quickly says, "I...was thinking about those films you talked about. I looked them up."

Chloe seems to pull away, maybe a milimetre, maybe less. Her voice is cautious. "Oh?"

Victoria blurts, "There's no fucking way I'm watching Alien on my own."

Chloe's expression shifts. Maybe by a milimetre, maybe less. Her voice is cautiously hopeful. "Oh? Need someone to hold your hand?"

"Maybe. Can you think of anyone who might be free, say, Wednesday evening? Someone who likes old movies?" Victoria laces her fingers through Chloe's. "And could...sneak into the girls' dorms at Blackwell?"

Chloe sucks in a breath and looks away. After a second, she noisily exhales. "That's a lot to ask." She faces Victoria again, not quite frowning.

Victoria gives Chloe a pleading look and tightly grips her hand.

Chloe sighs. "I'll ask around. See if there's anyone that can help you. Short notice, though. Might be tricky."

"Well, if you're not busy yourself..."

Chloe rubs her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm. Wednesday...Wednesday. Well, I was thinking of going for a vajazzling session. Y'know, get my shit tricked out..."

Victoria groans, but its mostly in relief that Chloe's joking again. "Why are you so fucking gross?"

Chloe laughs. "Wow, you're so sweet to me! I'm sold! Yeah, I'll sneak into the dorms, no sweat."

Victoria bites her lip. "Thanks. I know it's not...I just need some time, Chloe."

"Well, I can give you time. But...like, not indefinitely? Because I...want more out of this. I'm not gonna hide and hang out in places like this all the time. Sorry, but... _some_ pressure, y'know?"

Victoria nods. She squeezes Chloe's hand. "That's...fair." She adds, weakly, "I'm trying, Chloe. This time..."

Chloe nods. "Me, too. But...and fuck, it goes against my whole ethos to say this, but we're both going to need to try harder. Or this isn't going anywhere. And I'm beyond done with _that_ bullshit in this lifetime."

"I...I know." Victoria doesn't. Not exactly. There's still a lot she doesn't understand. But...Chloe needs time, too. "I'll work on it."

Chloe nods, slowly. "Okay." She reaches up and runs her thumb across the jut of Victoria's cheek bone.

Victoria sighs. "I do have to ask, though...how is ethos even part of your vocabulary?"

Chloe rolls her eyes. But she's grinning, too. "Oh, fuck you. I read books, Victoria. Usually on the shitter, true. But-"

"Oh, God!"

"Sorry, the commode."

"Not better. I'm leaving."

"You're kissing me first."

Victoria scoffs. "Obviously."

They kiss, and Victoria says, "Wednesday? Six?"

"Yeah. Yeah, looking forward to it."

Victoria kisses Chloe's cheek. She whispers, "Thank you. For tonight."

"You're welcome." Chloe traces the length of her cheek bone again. "Good night, Vic. Sleep tight."

And in spite of everything buzzing through her head, and against all her expectations, when Victoria gets back to Blackwell, she does.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> (And for your patience.)
> 
> Please do leave a comment, if you're into that sort of thing. Feedback contains no empty calories.


	8. Second Layer

The next day, Victoria wakes up feeling raw-skinned, fragile, and happy.

It's a strange mood that haunts her through the morning rituals of exercise, shower, makeup, hair, and wardrobe. It's the sort of mood that collapses under scrutiny, a physics problem as much as a psychological one.

Victoria avoids Taylor, obeying instinct rather than any kind of imperative, and she leaves the dorms earlier than she usually does.

It's a crisp morning, full of the threat of winter. The air doesn't quite bite, but its teeth are bared.

It feels nice against her skin.

She decides not to loiter by the dorms, and makes her way to the quad.

It's early enough that she should be guaranteed privacy, but that's not what she gets.

In the distance is David Madsen, Blackwell's head of security and someone Victoria's largely indifferent to, especially this morning.

But nearby, sitting at a picnic table, sketching, is Rachel Amber.

Victoria doesn't want to retreat, but she doesn't want to have to deal with Rachel. She tries to walk past the table, ignoring her.

Before Victoria has even drawn level with her, Rachel says, "Victoria Chase walks among us again!"

Victoria pauses, reluctantly.

Rachel is drawing her right hand with her left. Near the wrist, her sketch dives beneath the skin, revealing muscle, sinew, and bone.

It's exquisite. And fucking creepy.

Rachel looks up at her, smiling all the way to her hazel eyes. "If I'd known you'd be out so early, I'd have brought some roses. I could've strewn rose petals in your path."

Victoria's whole body tenses, the last wisps of her delicate mood burning away. "If I'd known _you_ were going to be here, I'd have gone somewhere else."

Rachel laughs cheerfully. She taps her chin with the pen while she studies Victoria.

"Hmm. Good thing I didn't waste all those roses, I suppose. Perhaps I'll borrow a trick from Heliogabulus when I use them later."

Victoria wants Rachel to stop talking, but she doesn't want to show weakness. "Perhaps you'll get to the fucking point. If you actually have one?" 

Rachel switches her pen to her right hand, and makes a few quick, bold strokes on a fresh page of her sketchbook.

"I'm just saying welcome back, Victoria. Be nice, or I won't tell you who Heliogabulus is."

Rachel's pen moves quickly. Her eyes stay mostly on Victoria, though she flicks a glance at the page from time to time. Her lips continue to smile.

"I don't give a shit!"

Rachel glances down, saying, "That's _really_ not your problem, my darling Chase."

"I don't _have_ any problems, precious Amber."

Rachel raises her free hand and waggles it. "Eh. Bit obvious, but not bad. You and Taylor both have the same problem, in fact."

Victoria grits her teeth. "Other than dealing with _you_ , I don't see what that could be."

Rachel finishes sketching. She tears the page out of her book, and shows it to Victoria. She's surprised to see her own face scowling back at her. It's a simple sketch, but startlingly lifelike.

As Victoria studies herself through Rachel's eyes, Rachel says, "You're both trying too hard to be you."

Victoria stares at her. "What...? What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

Rachel tuts. "Oh, honey. You're the wrong kind of pretty to be that kind of dumb."

Victoria isn't sure when she started shaking. She has to make a conscious effort not to chew her lip.

With a convulsive jerk, Victoria yanks Rachel's drawing out of her hand. She tears it in half, wads the pieces into a ball and tosses it at Rachel's face.

Rachel doesn't even so much as blink when it hits her cheek. "Play nice, Victoria," she says, calmly.

"Listen, bitch. I've tolerated your bullshit so far, but I'm about fucking done!"

Rachel smiles over Victoria's shoulder. "Good morning, Mr Madsen."

Victoria takes a quick breath before she turns.

David Madsen glowers at them both. "Everything okay here... _ladies_?"

There's a tightness to him that manifests in the skin around his eyes, and the pitch of his voice.

Victoria nods stiffly. "We're fine."

"You were yelling." He glares at her, stepping forward so that he's standing just a little too close. "And littering."

His kuckles are white.

Before Victoria can say anything, Rachel chimes in with, "We were just playing a game, Mr Madsen. Sorry if we got too loud. And look!" Rachel scoops up the paper ball. "No more litter!"

David glances at Rachel, grunts, and walks away in the direction of the dorms.

Victoria fumbles for her cigarettes.

Rachel says, "He...is one mother _fucking_ piece of shit _asshole_."

Victoria's so startled by the undisguised venom in Rachel's voice that she drops the packet.

Rachel tucks her sketchbook into her bag and climbs off the bench while Victoria recovers her cigarettes.

Victoria is about to light up when Rachel touches her wrist. "Come on, silly. Not here."

When Victoria hesitates, Rachel gently grips her wrist and tugs Victoria towards the steps.

Victoria finds her voice. "I'm not going to the fucking bleachers. Not with you."

Rachel tilts her head and studies Victoria again. "Oh? Who do you normally go with?"

Victoria snatches her hand away. "Fuck off, Rachel. Leave me the fuck alone."

Rachel sighs. "I had hoped we were going to bond, but..."

Rachel takes a step back and curtsies ostentatiously. "Good night, sweet Chase. And flights of angels sing thee to thy cigs."

Victori snarls, "Why are you _fucking_ with me today?"

Something dangerous pushes every vestige of warmth from Rachel's eyes. "It's not nice, is it? Being fucked with for no good reason? That's something you should maybe ponder once in a while."

Rachel turns, pauses to blow Victoria a kiss, and strides away.

Victoria watches her cross the football field, and vanish behind the bleachers. And as Rachel does, her long golden hair glowing even in the weak morning light, Victoria suddenly knows who it is Chloe tells all the secrets that she won't share with Victoria.

Victoria jams a cigarette into her mouth and lights up, heedless of the fact that she's standing near the main entrance of the school.

She needs nicotine to wash away the unspent adrenaline sitting sour in her belly.

She smokes two cigarettes, tossing the butts into the fountain when she's done.

When her phone pings with a message from Taylor, wondering where she is, Victoria is already moving.

She's in her car before the decision to ditch has reached her conscious mind.

* * *

Victoria drives down to the waterfront.

The beach is empty. The sea is a sheet of hammered lead under a watery sun.

Victoria smokes another cigarette, leaning against her car. She pretends to watch the view, but mostly she peers through the windows of the Two Whales.

Victoria knows she's not thinking clearly. She's making bad decisions today. If she misses a day of school, her parents will hear about it. And she can't exactly claim to be ill after her run-in with Blackwell's head of security.

It's still early enough that she could go back to Blackwell.

Victoria tosses her cigarette and goes into the diner.

It's busier than it was the other night.

And unlike last time, there are Blackwell students here. Victoria never bothered learning their names, but she recognises them as two of Blackwell's skater boys. The smell of weed from their booth is obvious even over the coffee and fried grease.

Victoria ignores them, and ventures over to the counter. She scans the booths, but there's no sign of Chloe.

A mug is deposited on the counter by Victoria's elbow. It has a chipped base and a patina of old coffee and grease molecules.

"Coffee, honey?"

A blonde waitress, middle-aged and resigned to it, holds up a coffee pot.

Victoria has had enough shitty diner coffee for one lifetime.

She nods anyway.

The waitress -- Joyce, according to her name tag -- smiles a well-worn smile and pours.

"Take a seat, honey. I'll get you a menu. You waiting on anyone?"

Victoria climbs onto a stool at the counter. "I'm...no, but...do you know Chloe Price? She's about my height, and..."

Victoria trails off because it's obvious that Joyce does know Chloe. Her expression closes off, losing the professional courtesy that hides how tired she is.

"What's she done this time?" Joyce asks the question wearily, but there's a thread of anger in there. Victoria thinks that just the wrong tug on that thread could unravel Joyce.

Victoria says, "Nothing! I...I'm her study partner. I was just...I know she eats here sometimes."

Joyce's expression softens. "Well...what's your name, honey?"

"Victoria."

"Victoria. Alright. Chloe's not here this morning, probably because she was up late last night and hasn't dragged her lazy ass out of bed yet."

Victoria tries to maintain a neutral expression. "You're...?"

Joyce smiles. "Chloe's mother, yes. I'm Joyce. You wait right here one minute."

Joyce provides Victoria with a menu before she bustles off to tend to her other customers.

Victoria pretends to study the menu while she thinks.

There's some relief in the thought that Chloe is still in bed, that she isn't already at Blackwell.

With Rachel.

Victoria could text her, of course, but...what if Chloe lies to her?

Has Chloe been lying to her?

She sure as shit didn't tell Victoria about Joyce. Who Victoria has just lied to, and is going to continue to lie to, for what will hopefully be a very short encounter.

Of course, sharing personal details is something Victoria tried to discourage until recently.

But surely Rachel must have come up at some point?

Victoria glances around. One of the Blackwell bros quickly looks away from her.

Joyce startles her when she says, "Make a decision?"

Victoria shakes her head. "I don't know what to...eat. Uh, maybe some pancakes?"

Joyce scribbles down Victoria's order and yells at the cook in the back.

"Won't be two ticks." Joyce looks around, and seems satisfied with what she sees. She leans her hip against the counter, and smiles at Victoria. "It's nice to finally meet you."

There are echoes of Chloe in that smile. 

Victoria says, "It's nice to meet you, too."

She isn't quite sure that that's a lie.

Joyce asks, "Are you Chloe's friend?"

Victoria hesitates. There's something...off about that question. And the way that the fingers of Joyce's right hand are pinching and releasing a fold of skin above her left elbow.

There's a roughed up kind of hope in Joyce's eyes.

"I..." Victoria hates everything about this situation, not least how she's walked herself into it. "I don't think I've been a good one," Victoria admits.

Joyce sighs. "Chloe doesn't make it easy. For anyone."

"It's not her fault!"

Victoria says it too quickly, and too loud.

She grabs the mug and forces herself to swallow a mouthful of overly acidic coffee. 

Joyce studies her. "Maybe you're not so bad of a friend as you think," she says, dryly.

"I don't think I know her very well. Less well than I thought, even. She told me she liked this place, but she didn't tell me...well, uh..."

"About me?" Joyce smiles, but there's nothing happy in it.

Victoria just shakes her head and takes another swallow. The coffee is awful, but the mug is pleasantly warm in her hands.

"Chloe...needs good friends. You seem like you've been a good influence, Victoria."

Victoria's palms grow slick against the worn ceramic. "She told you about me?"

Joyce snorts. "Grudgingly, and only under threat of losing bacon privileges. She didn't mention your name, but she told me she'd been spending time with a new friend at Blackwell. And she's been cutting class less, too."

"I think it's...it's important to plan for the future," Victoria says.

It's mostly just a politic thing to say, but Victoria finds she still believes it. Even if she isn't sure what she wants her future to look like any more.

Joyce's smile warms by several degrees. "That's a rare gift you have, if you can get Chloe to think about her future."

Victoria snorts. "I wouldn't go _that_ far. It's hard to get her to think about anything for long. Chloe has the attention span of an incontinent puppy." Victoria winces. "I mean, uh-"

Joyce laughs. "It's alright, Victoria. She's always been excitable." Joyce sighs. "She's just...less easily excited these days. If you can bring that out in her, that's a blessing."

Victoria wonders how much of a blessing Joyce would consider the specific context in which Victoria has most often excited Chloe.

Victoria catches herself hiding her smile behind the disgusting diner mug. Which makes her think about last night, and all the things Chloe said.

She wishes she could find some reassurance in them, but all she can think about is how much Chloe might have told Rachel Amber.

Joyce's smile fades. "Is there something...?" Joyce frowns, and glances at the kitchen. "Listen, could you do me a favour?"

Victoria blinks. "Me? What favour?"

"If I make your breakfast to go, would you maybe take it and something for Chloe? Make sure she actually gets up, eats and goes to school today?"

Victoria chews her lip.

Joyce smiles, a tight, fleeting quirk of the lips, close to a grimace. "No pressure, honey. You don't have to. But if you had something...private you wanted to say to her..."

Victoria says, "I don't know where you live."

"It's not far. I'll write down the address. And I'll owe you a cooked dinner, too. How's that sound?"

Fucking dismal in any number of ways.

Several long seconds pass.

Victoria wipes her palms on her skirt.

"Okay," she says.

* * *

Victoria takes the bag of food to her car.

She waits.

The skater boys leave a few minutes later. They pause when they see her.

Victoria says, "You two. Over here. Now."

Sheepishly, they obey.

The taller of them says, "What's up, Victoria?"

"Nothing. Which is what you saw and heard in there."

They exchange a glance. The shorter of them, says, "What, you mean when you were talking to Joyce?"

The tall one elbows him, hissing, "Shut up, dude."

Victoria narrows her eyes. "If you breathe one fucking word, I'll personally see to it that the rest of your days in Blackwell are shittier than _he_ can imagine."

Victoria points at the tall one, who pales slightly. "Discuss the concept amongst yourselves while you're fucking off."

She turns her back on them and gets into her car. She starts the engine and pretends to adjust her rear-view mirror while she watches them go.

The taller of the pair is talking urgently to the smaller one.

Victoria checks the address to Chloe's house before pulling out into the road.

She takes one last look as she drives past the bus stop.

The tall one looks nervous, his friend sullen.

Victoria's mouth is full of the taste of ash and acidic coffee.

Her hands are dry and steady on the wheel.

She doesn't feel happy, but, for the first time this morning, she feels safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've written ten different things this month.
> 
> My good intentions have met reality, with inevitable consequences.
> 
> Which is a roundabout way of saying I'm taking the whole rest of the month off.
> 
> HOWEVER, I'll be trying to stay on top of Grit, and aiming to bring you the next chapter in two weeks time. I think I know what happens next, and intend to write it before the story changes its mind again.
> 
> Thank you for reading. Thank you for your patience. Please do leave a comment. And have a lovely day.


	9. Third Layer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to punkdrommar for some really lovely fan art!
> 
> [Check it out!](https://punkdrommar.deviantart.com/art/hey-there-arm-candy-708430037)

Victoria parks across the street from an old timber frame house.

She checks the address again. This is the place.

Once upon a time, someone wanted to paint it sky blue. Victoria suspects she knows exactly how that story must have ended, to leave the lower two-thirds of the house's pale wood exposed.

Victoria carries the bag of food across the street and up the path to Chloe's door.

Closer inspection confirms that the blue paint is old. There are places where the blue has almost faded out, others where it is chipped and peeling. There are missed spots that someone never got the chance to go over.

It's one more shock this morning, to see Chloe's father's death so starkly pinpointed in time.

It takes Victoria nearly a minute before she can bring herself to knock.

It takes longer, and another, louder knock, before Chloe opens the door.

Joyce's fears seem well-founded. Chloe is still in her sleepwear of shorts and an old t-shirt. Her eyes are puffy. Her hair is a mess of spikes and tufts.

Victoria wants to run her fingers through it, and smooth it down.

Chloe's eyes widen at the sight of Victoria. She croaks, "Vic? You're...here? What is this?"

Victoria says, "Breakfast. Invite me the fuck in, already."

Chloe rubs her eyes. She runs a hand through her hair, mussing it up further. "Uh...come the fuck in."

She shuffles back, and Victoria slips past her, trying not to look at Chloe's long, pale legs. She itches to touch Chloe's hair, to touch _her_.

She doesn't.

Victoria steps into the hall, sees a kitchen on her left, a lounge ahead of her.

The interior is shabby. The air is musty, redolent of old cooking fat, fresh motor oil, and fossilized grief. 

Victoria carries the food into the kitchen. 

It's easy to see that this could have been a home, once. Photographs, ornaments, and old furniture hint at happier times.

But neglect of once loved things has rendered this place into a house.

In a way, it's worse than Victoria's parents' condo in Seattle. Victoria hadn't expected that.

She has no fucking idea how Chloe can stand living here.

Chloe follows her, stiff and wary, if not quite hostile. "No offense, but how the fuck are you here, Victoria?"

Victoria considers Chloe. "Do you want to eat first, or shower first?"

Chloe narrows her eyes, and Victoria can almost see the anger metastasizing through her body.

Victoria says, "For fuck's sake, Chloe. I met your mother at the diner. She sent me with breakfast. Are we ever going to get past snapping at each other? Can we try talking for once?"

Chloe processes that for a minute. She frowns, and silently eases past Victoria. She opens cupboards and drawers, assembling plates and cutlery, which she carries to the dining table.

Victoria joins her, and dishes out their meals. Victoria's pancakes are soggy and a little cold, but surprisingly flavourful.

Chloe assaults a plateful of bacon and eggs while Victoria picks at her food. "So...you met my mom?" 

She keeps her eyes on her plate.

"Yes. She's...nice." Victoria frowns and puts down her fork. "I...was looking for you. At the diner. I asked Joyce if she knew you."

"Get any good gossip about me?" Chloe's more bitter than the Two Whales' coffee.

Victoria stares at her. "Aren't you going to ask _why_ I was looking for you?"

She puts the edge she's been on for most of the morning into her voice.

Chloe looks up from her plate. She bites her lip. "Okay," she says, softer now. "Why were you-"

"I had a run in with Rachel Amber."

Chloe's eyes widen. "Oh."

It's not exactly confirmation of all of Victoria's fears, but it's enough to open the door to them.

Victoria pushes her plate away, unfinished. "Well, fuck. _Fuck_."

Chloe says, "I...come on. Let's go out back. We can smoke."

Victoria pushes away from the table and walks to the sliding doors. She opens them, walking out into the back yard. The fence is in need of a fresh coat of paint. The grass needs to be mowed. There's an old swing set in one corner, rusty and dilapidated.

Weeds curl like clutching fingers around the base of a derelict barbecue.

Victoria lights a cigarette.

Chloe follows her out, suppressing a shiver. She hugs herself and stares up at the sky. "I hate winter."

Victoria sighs. "Here."

She passes Chloe the lit cigarette. Chloe unfolds, accepting the cigarette with a shy smile.

At the sight of it, Victoria's shoulders ease down. "I...freaked after I talked to Rachel. She made me think...I don't know why I thought you'd be at the diner. But...I should've told you I was coming."

"Okay...I've had my share of Rachel Amber headfucks. But...yeah. You can call me, you know?" 

Victoria nods, sheepishly.

Chloe takes a drag. "Not saying I wouldn't find a way to still get pissed at you, but I could've put pants on at least." She pauses, and slowly smirks. "Unless that was your plan?"

Victoria yanks her eyes away from Chloe's legs. "No! I needed to see you, that's all. I...look, Rachel said some things. About roses, and the bleachers, and..." Victoria swallows. "I saw her. Going to you. At Thanksgiving."

Chloe groans. "Fuck. Okay. Yeah. I called her. I...needed someone."

"Someone who wasn't me," Victoria says, as evenly as she can.

Chloe winces. "It's complicated. And I didn't think we were real, Vic. Y'know? Uh, here."

Victoria gratefully accepts the cigarette, more for the indication that she hasn't completely fucked everything up yet than to satisfy her addiction.

Chloe hugs herself, suppressing a shiver. "Rachel and I are...were friends. _Are_ friends. Fuck, I don't even know!"

Chloe whirls and slams the sliding door closed. She leans against it, facing away from Victoria. Abruptly, she yanks it open again, and stomps into the living room. She returns a minute later with a remarkably ugly ashtray, which she puts on the ground between them.

Victoria kneels to crush out the smoldering butt. She takes her time standing up and lighting another cigarette.

Chloe looks calmer when she faces her again.

Victoria says, "I didn't even know you knew her. I didn't even know it _was_ her until this morning."

Chloe rubs her face. "Rachel and I were...friends for nearly two years. I met her in a...club. A real fucking dive. We just sort of clicked. I wasn't...I wasn't doing great when I met her. It was a crazy night, but...I didn't expect the most popular girl in school would want to keep hanging out with someone like me."

Victoria blurts, "But she did?"

"Yeah. She did. We were close, too. She made me feel..." Chloe looks out over the fence, and shrugs. "Wanted, I suppose."

Victoria touches her shoulder. Chloe turns, and accepts the cigarette Victoria offers her.

Victoria runs her hand down Chloe's arm and tangles their fingers together.

Chloe smokes quietly for a while. Abruptly, she says, "We used to hook up, sometimes. And for her it was...like a game. Like it hadn't even happened. I tried to play along, but...it was fucking everything to me. She was everything."

She says it without any particular inflection.

Victoria fights against the roil in her stomach, against the tremors that run through her frame. "The two of you were...together?"

Chloe snorts. "Not even as much as you and I were, before Thanksgiving." She pauses. "It was still better than anything I'd ever had."

Victoria is on the brink of pulling away when Chloe squeezes her hand. She squeezes so hard it hurts.

"Until now, Vic."

When the pressure eases, and she's able to, Victoria squeezes back. She doesn't trust herself to say anything, so she doesn't.

Chloe finishes her cigarette before she speaks again.

"Does it count as cheating if you're not really a couple? I found out this summer she'd been...well. We had a fight. Fuck, _I_ started a fight with her. Thanksgiving's the first time I talked to her since."

Victoria waits, tracking the progress of gooseflesh on Chloe's arms.

"I spent Thanksgiving in her dorm room. I...was alone, for most of it. Rachel had to go be with her folks. But...she came through for me. We're maybe friends again? I don't know. I don't know how to feel about her."

"I thought...I thought maybe you'd told her. About us."

Chloe looks at her. It's a tired look. "Your secret's safe with me."

Victoria flinches. "I suppose she saw me, too. That morning. I should've known." Victoria tries to find the right thing to say, but her mind is full of fog and razor blades. "Did you...do you want to...be with-"

"I'm not putting myself through that shit again." Chloe locks eyes with Victoria. "Not for anyone."

It's reassurance. It's a warning.

Victoria bows her head. "No. You shouldn't have to."

She squeezes Chloe's hand, hoping.

Chloe squeezes back.

After a minute's silence, Chloe says, "Can we go back in?"

"Yeah. It's cold. And I think I've fucked my lungs up enough for one morning."

Chloe snorts. "I wish I was even slightly fucked-up right now."

Victoria lets go of Chloe and collects the ashtray. They go back inside. Chloe clears the debris of their breakfast and carries it all into the kitchen.

Victoria puts the ashtray on the dining table, at which point she runs out of things to do.

She stands uncertain, watching Chloe.

Chloe dumps the bag, containers, and uneaten food into the trash. The plates and cutlery she puts into the sink.

When she starts rinsing them off, Victoria realises Chloe's putting off facing her again.

Victoria takes a few tentative steps towards her. She stops just outside the kitchen. "Hey..."

Chloe pauses, but doesn't turn around.

And Victoria doesn't know how to say all the things she needs to. She isn't sure how to clean up the mess she keeps making of things.

So she just says, "I don't think I can deal with Blackwell today. I'm going to go for a drive. Would you...like to come with me?"

Chloe looks at her. She studies Victoria with that familiar intensity. 

Victoria's beginning to understand what Chloe's looking for. Victoria isn't sure she has it in her. 

After a long second's scrutiny, Chloe's lips quirk up. "But if we did that, we could get in _trouble_."

Victoria snorts. "I don't give a shit about what happens later. I want to go somewhere. With you. Now."

"Holy shit! Rebellious and romantic? I might have to swoon a little!"

She clutches at the sink dramatically. She grins at Victoria, and the pressure that's been crushing down on Victoria since she walked into this house eases slightly.

Victoria smiles. "Just to be clear, we're taking my car. Unless you want to go to the wrecker's? Put your truck out of its misery?"

"Aaaand she's back to normal. Swoon over." Chloe pushes away from the sink, moving closer to Victoria.

Victoria carefully advances into the kitchen. Chloe takes a step to meet her.

"I should get showered."

"Okay."

They're two steps apart. They don't move.

"Vic...you don't have to make big gestures. That's not...it's not what I-"

"I know. I want to spend the day with you. Just...be. Right?"

Chloe sighs. "Okay." She studies Victoria again. "Okay."

Victoria takes two more steps, and kisses her. Chloe puts her arms around Victoria's waist, and holds her close.

Chloe says into Victoria's ear, softly, "Probably should've let me brush my teeth first, huh?"

Victoria laughs, and shoves her away.

Then she grabs her, and kisses her again.

Just to prove Chloe wrong.

* * *

While Chloe's in the shower, Victoria takes out her phone.

She feels a pang of guilt at the number of concerned messages Taylor's sent her.

She decides to send just three words in response: _Cover for me_.

Victoria does two more things before she switches her phone off.

She deletes the name 'Bud' from her contacts list

She replaces it with 'Chloe Price'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> Look at this! Two chapters in less than three weeks?! Crazy!
> 
> I'm going to try and keep to a fortnightlyish schedule. The most important syllable being 'ish'.
> 
> This was a tricky scene to navigate, and a lot of things are left unsaid, but hopefully it's all clear enough. Please do let me know what you think!
> 
> Oh, and if you didn't know (maybe because I've been rubbish about saying it), I'm on [tumblr!](https://postfuguestate.tumblr.com) Do as your conscience dictates with that information!
> 
> Until next time, friends!


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